More Like a Phoenix
by Fae 206
Summary: After being targeted by an international gang, Ren Tsuruga's life is over, at least his current acting life. When Kuon's enemies come back they leave the actor for dead in a burning apartment, drugged, bound, and beaten. When Kuon escapes though he'll have to live with the sins of his past. Will he rise again like a phoenix?How will Kyoko become a healing light to her fairy prince?
1. Prologue

**AN:** I needed to write a fic like this because I've been feeling a little depressed lately. I will try my best not to make it too sad or make it go over a T rating. I really hope you can enjoy it.

 **More Like a Phoenix**

 **Prologue**

Julie looked down at the doorstep and stared at the dead bird that was left in the middle of the step on top of a piece of white paper. The blood of the bird pooled in the center of the paper creating a red circle on the middle of the white paper. Birds had been left before, but she had thought that they had been brought by cats or other animals. This one seemed intentional through someone who was able to get through the security system.

She looked at the bird and sighed as she grabbed a handkerchief to place it in. She sighed as she looked at the paper. Was someone threatening the Hizuri family again? After all of these years could there still be people who held grudges? It could have even been a new grudge. Had there been something that she had done with her modelling or acting that had led to a bird image.

She had worn feathers, but this sparrow wasn't part of her designs. Unless, it wasn't a sparrow, could it have been a house finch or - Julie quickly shook her head. There was no way that they could know that. No. It had to be a sparrow. Maybe it was a starling like, that's so startling.

Julie looked up to see that Kuu was coming to see what she had found and his eyes widened as he saw a clump in another handkerchief. "Kuu, please tell me that this bird is a sparrow," Julie said as she unwrapped the handkerchief and Kuu paused. He opened his mouth but a dark fear was causing him to pause and his face to turn a ghostly white.

"That's a wren," he tried to tell her as Julie looked at him shocked. She had always assumed they were sparrows and had tried to quietly and respectfully dispose of the bodies. Maybe she had tried to make herself believe that cats were catching sparrows instead of -

"It's a coincidence, right?" Julie asked with her eyes widening.

Kuu took a deep breath in as he tried to calm himself down. He looked over to her, "Maybe, you did try to bring in wrens with the birdhouses, maybe they worked," he said as Julie nodded. "Was this all there was?"

Julie held up the paper and Kuu turned even paler as he looked at it.

"The Japanese flag? They're in -" Kuu shook his head as Julie felt tears come to her eyes. "I need to tell Boss," he said as he grabbed his phone. He hesitated when he realized it would be very early in the morning in Japan.

"I swear to God, Kuu" Julie said making Kuu press the button to call his old friend.

Kuu took deep breaths as he waited for his call to be picked up and was surprised when he did get Lory on the other end of the line.

"So, I take it you've seen the news," Lory said as Kuu paused, he looked over at Julie and gestured to the TV.

"The news?" Kuu asked as Lory paused weakly. "What is it? I jus—"

Kuu heard Julie gasp and went to the living room where she was standing in front of the TV with her eyes wide. Kuu moved over to the living room and the phone dropped from his hand as he read the text scrolling underneath.

 _After twelve hours in ICU actor Tsuruga Ren is moved into the burn ward of hospital. Chances of recovery are improving, our wishes are with you Ren._

 **End Prologue**

 **AN2:** Hope you guys enjoy reading this but mainly it's so that I can have something to concentrate on when I have shifts in my moods. Oh and if anyone wants to give me some writing advice, I have been writing for twenty-two years so pretty happy with where I am especially since fanfiction is what I right for fun and to relax.


	2. Chapter 1 - I deserve that

**AN:** So, I've decided that over this month I'm going to attempt to do a new thing with my updates. Not only will I be rotating the fics each day, but I plan on sticking with a fic for three or four days and updating each day before moving onto another and giving it the same treatment. I will be working on seven fics this month so I hope I'll be able to deliver work that you enjoy 😊

 **Chapter One – I deserve that**

Kyoko didn't want to go to work that day. She knew that she couldn't really use the fact that Ren was in the hospital as an excuse not to go into work because she hadn't told anyone that she was in love with him. Did that even matter though? Did the fact that she loved having Ren's arms wrapped around her body and the fact that whenever he called her she got happy, did those things count? Ren had once told her that with a true actor even the death of a loved one shouldn't cause them to pause.

He couldn't possibly have been talking about his _own_ possible death.

As she walked the hallways, she heard a sound behind her and shifted so that she was holding herself closer. She slowly turned and gave a weak smile as she saw Kanae there. "Hi, Moko," she said as she felt the tears in her eyes.

"Are you doing alright?" Kanae asked, this time not commenting on the lack of energy that Kyoko had because it was more than obvious what it was about. "Have they given you any information?"

Kyoko shook her head, "No. Only family gets that information and…" she paused and closed her eyes to stop the tears from falling. "Tsuruga Ren isn't his real name. I know that the president knows his real name, but I don't know if he gave it to them in the hospital. I don't think even Ten-san knows who he really is."

"I'm sure that his family is going to come, this is major news and everyone in Japan is talking about it. What kind of parents wouldn't come? Even if they are farmers from a poorer rural town, a normal parent would do anything to come to the hospital," Kanae commented as Kyoko nodded. "They are probably already there, mo"

Kyoko looked away, "They're not," she told Kanae, "Moko-san, they're not at the hospital with him or maybe they're on their way. What I know is that right now Tsuruga-san or whatever his name really is, he's all alone. What if he wakes up and nobody is there to see him?"

"Mo," Kanae sighed with a tired exhale, "I take it that you've already been to the hospital and that's how you found all that out."

"I was with Yashiro-san," Kyoko said, "I wasn't expecting the hospital to let me in but I thought since everyone knows that Yashiro-san is Tsuruga-san's manager they might make an exception. They told us that only family is allowed to come and see him. Yashiro-san even asked if his mother and father had been notified but there was nobody on the record."

"I wouldn't think there'd be if he was checked in under a stage name. Do we even know if he _has_ parents?" Kanae inquired and Kyoko looked down.

"I don't know. Tsuruga-san has never spoken about either of them. I don't know if he has any siblings who could come either. What if the reason for his stage name is that he is the only one of his family who is still alive? What if they were targeted by the gang before – but then, I don't even know if he's American or Japanese," Kyoko said as she attempted not to cry.

Kanae paused and looked over at where the president, who was dressed normally with a business suit on (which was definitely more worrying) entered the first floor. "You could always talk to him and see if he can go see Tsuruga," Kanae gestured to Lory.

Kyoko's breath caught in her throat. The president _did_ know about her feelings for Ren and _he had_ assigned the roles of the Heel siblings to him. Maybe he would be able to give her clearance so that Ren wouldn't be suffering through this alone. He had allowed her to know a top secret when he had told her about Cain Heel. It was worth a shot wasn't it?

She made her way over to him before seeing something unexpected. A blond man, wearing sunglasses and with a very familiar gait was making his way towards the president. Kyoko took a step back as she heard the whispers of 'It's Kuu, right' or 'What is Kuu doing here?' and 'Am I dreaming? That's the famous Kuu Hizuri.'

"Fa—" Kyoko started to say before her eyes widened as Kuu punched the president in the jaw. She noticed how security guards were rushing over to them but she also saw as the president told them that they should stand down. Kyoko blinked as she looked at Kuu. Why had he suddenly come to Japan without there being news reports on it and then come into LME to punch the president in the face. What was going on here?

"I suppose I deserve that," the president said as he put a hand to his jaw and Kyoko could notice how much Kuu was shaking but it didn't seem to be with fear, no, her grudges were telling her that this was a type of anger that she had only detected from Ren in the past.

"I know that I'm supposed to be acting as a stranger in my son's life," Kuu growled, "but this is so far over the line."

Kyoko looked between them as her mind started to race. She had thought that Kuon Hizuri might have passed away, after all Moko-chan had been playing the role of a guy's deceased daughter when she had come to Daruma-ya. Kyoko had thought maybe the reason why Kuu-sama had made her act out Kuon had been because of his death.

"Kuu, it might be best to go to my office," the president said with a gesture to the elevator.

Kuu stood there with his fists by his side, "So you can hide? So you can tell me why my wife and I aren't allowed to see him?"

"I was attempting to sort out the problem, he only approached me a couple of days about it. I know I should have asked myself why he came to me when he usually attempts to sort out the issues himself bu-"

"Days?" Kuu asked as he whipped off his sunglasses, "You've known about this for _days_!? When you told me that you were going to take care of him, I believed you. Now I find out that he was tied up, gagged, drugged, and his apartment was set on fire." Kuu interrupted him as Kyoko's eyes widened, "Does our deal end when he's twenty-one because even though he's an adult now, if you know something this important, didn't it cross your mind to tell Julienna and myself?"

"It would lead to exposure of his identity," the president argued as Kuu scoffed at that.

"Then you send him back to LA. You send him on a modelling shoot, give him a vacation to Australia and force him to take it. You do _something_ , you don't just -"

"Is Tsuruga-san your son?" Kyoko asked bravely as she took a step forward to look at Kuu. "Is he really Kuon?" she said as she wrapped an arm around herself. She saw Kuu looking at her, just noticing that she was there along with about forty other people who were listening to the conversation.

He had said that he was keeping the Ren Tsuruga identity as Kuon's identity as a way of protecting him and he had done this for so many years. He hadn't had contact with his child because he wanted him to be safe. Was it okay that he was exposing him because he was injured? It had to be. Knowing the gravity of the situation, Kuon would hopefully forgive him.

"Yes," Kuu nodded, "The guy that you know as Ren is my son. It's nice to see you again Kyoko, I just wish it was under far far better circumstances."

Kyoko nodded before looking up at the president, she wasn't sure if Ren – no, Kuon had been checked in with his real name. Why wasn't Kuu-sama at the hospital? Weren't doctors supposed to keep things confidential, surely in a situation like this they would have reached out to the Hizuri family.

"Make the call, Lory" Kuu growled as he threw his own phone into the president's hands. "Julie is at the hospital right now but they are not letting her in without confirmation. She told them that Ren was our son but without your confirmation, they are unwilling to allow her into the room to see him. So, make the damn call," he growled again, his glare darkening.

…

…

Julie looked at a teddy bear that she had brought with her and now had her arms wrapped around. Kuon had loved this bear when he was a little boy. They had given him the bear for his first birthday and he had excitedly played with him, making him his best friend. When he was old enough to do so, Kuon had called the bear Xander. Even though both she and Kuu had been busy, they had always made sure that one of them was home in time to tuck the little boy into bed and read him a story. In one of his favorite stories, there had been a character named Alexander and so Xander had been chosen.

It had been such a long time since she had tucked that little boy into the bed and kissed his forehead. After the Rick incident, she had come up with a way of opening the door without him noticing to check on him. It wasn't that she wanted to make sure he was in his bed, it was that she was worried about his condition getting worse.

He was her little boy and it pained her that she couldn't even see him.

She knew that even if they had known his identity, it would have been a long shot. He had apparently been moved around constantly from the emergency room to the ICU to the burn ward. She at least wanted information of his condition.

She had heard that he had deep burns all over his body which would prevent him from acting unless surgery could cover them. Some people had even commented that this wasn't something that could be solved with skin grafts. No matter how he looked, no matter the extent of his injuries. Julie _needed_ to see him. She didn't want him to be alone any longer.

Somehow, she had heard, they had managed to save a lot of his personal possessions and aside from the living room where he had been tied up, the other rooms were barely touched and that it was his manager who had realized that something was wrong. Thankfully, Kuon had kept a few fireproof boxes around which held valuable and confidential items, those, along with a number of boxes holding items that had been saved.

A doctor came over to her as Julie sat there, tears washing down her face as she tried to look at Xander's face to find her own comfort in the favorite toy. "Hizuri-san, we've just had word from Takarada-san. I want to apologize for us keeping you waiting for so long. Tsuruga-san has been moved to a private room and I can allow you to sit with him, if you would like. I do have to warn you that he has taken a lot of injury and needs support when he wakes up. Would you like to follow me to his room?"

Julie nodded as the words played in her head. How bad was it that they had to tell her that he needed support? Of course, she and Kuu would support him. He was _their_ child and they didn't want to hand him over to anyone else. Even if there was an ocean between them and even if he wanted to hide his identity, he was still _their_ little boy.

As she reached the room, Julie gasped and put a hand to her mouth as the tears couldn't stop falling. She looked back at the doctor, "Are you sure that's him?" she asked, barely recognizing her son from the position she was standing in. She could only think of that guy from those comic books, the really popular superhero who dressed up as a bat. What had been the character's name? Two-Face?

 **End Chapter One**

 **AN2:** Thank you to everyone who has read this fic so far. A special shout out to: **Crazy4Animation** and **Sargent93** for their reviews of the prologue 😊 Thank you so much!


	3. Chapter 2 - Women are fickle creatures

**AN:** This chapter has a lot of sad moments in it, but I really hope you like it. I personally like the end a lot but then I know that the writer often disagrees with the reader. I hope you enjoy.

 **Chapter Two: Women are fickle creatures**

As she sat beside him, Julie allowed her fingers to run through the hair on the good side of his face. She had allowed herself to cry when she had first seen the damage to his body. She had understood why they had told her to prepare herself for seeing him, but this was her little boy, nothing would ever change that.

One side of his face had a few light bruises on it, but for the most part he looked like Kuon. His brown 'Ren Tsuruga' hair lay limply on that side. Apart from the emotional pain showing, there wasn't anything that couldn't be fixed but on the other side of his face. Julie had seen what makeup artists called third degree burns, she had seen accidents on the news where people got badly burned, but she had never seen it up close and in real life. Now her son's face was covered with the burnt skin and she wanted to do something to make it go away.

There were other burns on his body, such as on his arms and legs but the main burnt area was the left side of his face. She didn't know how he would take it. She knew that unless they managed to cover it – the hospital had said it was improbable – he wouldn't be able to act with it.

She knew already that the media would be ruthless towards him. This famous actor and model now being sickening to anyone who wasn't his own mother was going to tear him down. Julie couldn't even look at his face without the tears appearing in her eyes. Her only sense of relief came from the fact that Kuon was still alive. She only hoped he would be strong enough to keep living.

Julie heard a tap on the door and she immediately stood up, using her body to block Kuon's face where the left side was turned towards the entrance. She didn't know whether it was a doctor or not, but if it was the media then she wouldn't let them be near her son.

As the door opened, Julie's look became more protective and colder as if a Mama bear protecting her young cub. She gave a sigh of relief when she noticed that it was a distraught Kuu Hizuri standing there. She still stayed in front of Kuon. She knew her husband loved their son but she didn't want to see a chance of disgust in his eyes. She didn't want him to repulsed and leave them, despite how much she knew inside that this wasn't going to happen, her protectiveness was getting the better of her.

"He's in really bad shape," Julie said as she looked into her husband's eyes. "I want you to prepare yourself to see him. I don't want you to hurt our little boy."

Kuu took a deep breath before letting it out, "They told me it was bad," he said, "He was in the burn ward for quite some time. I'm ready to see him."

Julie looked at him, her eyes narrowing as she studied him. "Do you remember that comic book that Kuon used to read when he was a kid?"

"Kuon read a lot of different books when he was a child," Kuu replied as he tried to see past Julie but she wouldn't let him.

"There was that villain in one of them who had –" she put her hand up to cover her face, "His face was hurt so he developed these dual personalities. I think that's what I remember. I was never really into those books."

Kuu nodded, "I remember," he told her. "I think Kuon read those books because he was impressed by the early TV shows. Those actors marked an age of TV acting, Kuon always liked studying from any prominent sh-" Kuu paused as Julie stepped away and went to the other side of the bed. Kuu's eyes caught hold of the burn marks and his eyes filled with pain for his son.

"They must have put something on his face," Kuu said as he started to feel a complicated mix of anger and sorrow. He sat down next to Kuon on the burnt side and spread his fingers out over the air above his face. "Maybe there's some kind of a mask or something at least to cov-" Kuu said as he looked around. The last thing that he wanted was for the media to latch onto this.

"I asked," Julie nodded. "I told them that bandages would probably be best, but they told me that it needed to breathe. These stupid doctors," she said as Kuu sighed.

"There's no hiding these," he said as he studied the blistered and crisp skin. "I think that they might cause some kind of an infection if he tried to get them covered by surgery." He looked over at Julie. "I want to stay in Japan a little longer, I know that I have to get back and finish the shooting but they'll understand. You have to go back earlier so I can stay with him."

Julie shook her head, "I can't leave him like this. You know how he was before he went to Japan. I don't want him to fall into that place again, a place where he can't move" she said as she started to cry, wrapping an arm around her chest.

Kuu looked down, he needed to figure out a plan to help his family and especially his son. He agreed with Julie though, there was a chance that he would become trapped in his own mind. He needed support. He was starting to think about that when he heard a shaky – and surprisingly clear – voice.

"Am I dead?" the twenty-one-year-old asked as he opened his eyes slightly. As he opened his left eye, he felt a burning pain and flinched.

"Fortunately not," Kuu said as Julie started to cry again. He saw Kuon grimace and stood up. "What hurts?" he asked quickly as Kuon stared at him not understanding why his parents were there. How long had he been here?

"What are yo—" Kuon asked and Kuu looked at him.

"You were on the news. Your attack and recovery made Japanese news, you've been unconscious for over a day at least. Did you really think that we could allow our son to die and not be there for him? I know that you wanted to protect your identity, but there is a line that gets crossed when a gang targets you, drugs you, and tries to burn down your apartment whilst you're inside of it," Kuu told him and Kuon watched him.

"I guess I should thank you then," he said weakly. "My left eye hurts," he said before reaching a hand up and feeling pain across his face however this wasn't the smooth skin he was used to. It felt like crispy chicken skin and he found his dad to grab his hand lightly and pull it away from his face.

"You might worsen your condition if you touch your face, Kuon," he told him and the brunette nodded weakly, confusion showing in his right eye.

"Does Mogami-san know that I'm here?" Kuon asked weakly, he couldn't comprehend the situation that he was in. His voice sounded normal. If his throat and voice were fine then the rest of him should be fine.

"Mogami-san?" Julie asked as Kuon turned his attention towards her and nodded.

"You remember that I told you about Kyoko," Kuu said as Julie nodded, now understanding the situation. She stiffened as she looked over at her son once again. Her son was in love with this younger woman but that would cause him more pain. Surely most women would look at the burn and decide that he wasn't attractive any longer. They wouldn't hold an interest in him like they once had.

Julie frowned. This Kyoko would probably take one look at her son and say, "Nah, I can do better uggo." That's how most women in LA behaved. Despite how much her son and husband cared about this girl, she would go by appearances and her precious Kuon would have to watch as she turned her attention to somebody else.

"She does," Kuu nodded. "She gave me her phone number when I was here the last time, did you want me to call her? I think that I can get her clearance to come and see you."

"No!" Julie shook her head, "I don't want you to feel worse. Women are fickle creatures, Kuon, you don't want to hear the judgements that these young women carry around with them," she said trying to protect her son despite not knowing Kyoko.

Both Kuu and Kuon looked confused as she said that. Kuon was the one who spoke first, "Mogami-san isn't like that. There are people that she holds grudges against but when you haven't hurt her, she's understanding and kind and she would never intentionally hurt anyone. She knows how it is to be bullied and feel like an outcast, she'd never hurt anyone."

"She's a really good girl," Kuu told his wife. "I doubt that she would want to do anything which could harm him."

Kuon looked at them before pausing, a sinking feeling inside his gut. "It's really bad isn't it?" he asked them. Julie looked towards Kuu, she couldn't break the bad news to her son. She looked up at Kuu who was taking his phone out and turned the camera on before handing it to Kuon. He saw his son's face turn into a look of terror as he stared at the damage on his face. His body started shaking in fear but he looked down. "I want Mogami-san to see me like this. It's better for her if she never wants to see me again," he looked at his father, "Can I call her?" he asked.

Kuu nodded silently, he wasn't sure what his son meant by it being better for Kyoko to never want to see him again.

...

…..

Kanae had decided to sacrifice her diet and her waistline by taking Kyoko out to the ice cream place where they had been a couple of times before. Kyoko had managed to finish her work assignments but Kanae knew that nobody but Ren – Kuon was on her mind. She hadn't seen anger within her friend since she had learned the truth, but she could imagine Kyoko's emotions running around inside of her head and crashing into each other.

This was told by the fact that she had been so quiet and at this moment was just moving the ice cream around in the bowl rather than declaring this best friend ice cream day. As she watched Kyoko, the two of them heard her phone ring and she pulled it out. Kanae managed to catch the name 'Kuu-sama' on the phone and Kyoko immediately answered it.

"Hello? This is Kyoko," she said. Despite her fear over what was happening to the guy she cared about most, she still felt the need to be formal and respectful.

"Hello, Mogami-san" Kuon said as Kyoko felt tears in her eyes and she tried to put a hand up to keep a sob from being heard on the other end of the line. _He_ was calling her. He must be okay then, that's what it had to mean. "It's Tsuruga-san."

"Yes," Kyoko said before Kuon could get another word out. "How are you feeling? Is everything alright? Is there something that I can -"

"Can you come to talk to me in person?" Kuon asked her as Kyoko nodded but then realized that he couldn't see her on the phone.

"Of course," Kyoko said with a relieved smile on her face. "Listen I…I know that you're really Kuon. I…I don't want to hide the fact that I know. It's okay though, I understand. It was a really big surprise for me but I knew you had a stage name and it's-"

"I just want to see you," Kuon told her and Kyoko nodded. She tried to wipe the tears away from her eyes and she laughed weakly despite the pain.

"I'd like to see you too," she admitted and as she got off the phone she looked at Kanae, "Moko-chan…" she said awkwardly.

"Just go. The two of you want to see one another so just go," she said as Kyoko bowed and then thanked her friend before rushing off.

…..

…..

When Kyoko arrived at the hospital, she was met by Kuu who escorted her to Kuon's room. Despite the fact that Kyoko must have asked a dozen different questions about how Kuon was, Kuu wasn't telling her anything other than, "you'll see." In a shorter time than Kyoko had expected, she was looking at the closed door of Kuon's hospital room. Her gut was sinking and she felt an odd chill against her body. Something seemed wrong here.

She opened the door tentatively and stepped in. As she looked at Kuon, her eyes automatically went to the burn and she felt tears falling down her face. She wrapped an arm around her chest and just stared at his skin.

Julie watched her, she expected for Kyoko to just turn around and run away. Her son wasn't the prize that most women would want anymore. However, on shaking legs, Kyoko approached her son, tears still cascading down her cheeks.

"Tsuruga-san," she said as her lips quivered and she ran towards him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, sobbing into his chest. "You're alive," she said as he held her close, his arms weak and his eyes in disbelief of her reaction. He had seen himself and through his own judgements believed that Kyoko might feel the same. Still, she was acting as if he looked the same, her arms wrapped around him and her tears making the hospital gown damp.

"Mogami-san, I need you to look at me," he told her as Kyoko nodded and stepped back a little. She stood looking at Kuon face on. "Look," he pointed to the burnt side of his face and Kyoko nodded, her eyes filled with the same pain that he had seen in his mother's. "You can't ignore this. How do you feel about me now?" he asked her as Kyoko looked down.

She gripped to her upper arm and felt that her heart was going to shatter if she said this. She gazed into his eyes, aware of how his face was. He would have to be brave so she would have to be brave too and the fear of his death had only confirmed one thing to her.

"I love you."

 **End of Chapter Two**

 **AN2:** Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading and supporting this fic 😊 Special shout out to my Chapter One reviewers: **ktoll9, Michiyo, rosavera**


	4. Chapter 3 - You'll Always be Special

**AN:** Please enjoy 😊 I wasn't able to write for one of the fics I planned to yesterday because I got asked to stay longer at work and I had a migraine which seems to have cleared for right now. I hope you enjoy this chapter 😊

 **Chapter Three- You'll Always be Special**

The Hizuri family – well two of the members of the Hizuri family, Kuon and Julie, looked at Kyoko in shock as she stood there with her eyes not leaving Kuon's. Kuu, however was smiling excitedly. Kyoko took a deep breath in. "I don't say those words lightly. It's not out of the fact that I think that I think you need to hear them, I just…it doesn't matter what you look like, Tsuru – Hizuri-san, I love you. I love the way you have always helped me and supported me. I love it when you pat my head and wrap your arms around me. I love that I can talk to you about anything and even if you laugh, you try to understand me. I love who you are and even if your entire face was burnt like that horror villain, I'd love you."

"I love you too" Kuon said in response. "I do," he nodded before looking down. "I haven't been honest with you though. I don't know if you'll still love me when you find out how I've been lying to you. I never intended to hurt you."

Kyoko allowed herself to smile as she heard his unexpected reply. Maybe now she'd have enough trust and courage to tell him that she was his confidant, that she had dressed in a rooster-duck combo just to help him. "Okay," she nodded not thinking that he could say anything which would hurt her so badly she would turn against those feelings.

"I stole a kiss from you," he started as Kyoko blinked confused.

"On the cheek? Are you talking about when you kissed me on Valentine's Day?" she asked as the Hizuri parents looked at one another. Kuon shifted awkwardly.

"No. I told you that I was under a curse," he said as he looked down not sure what her response would be. "I told you that I could only use magic once a day, that adults could only see the person that they were thinking about. I didn't really mean to hurt you. I thought that you'd figure it ou—" he said as Kyoko gasped and put a hand over her mouth.

"No…way" she said slowly as she looked him over. Her heart started pounding in her chest as she took in the revelation. Still, how could she end up meeting her childhood friend after so many years. How could she have crossed paths with him when there were hundreds of ways that she wouldn't have been able to.

"You're…Corn?" she asked as Kuon looked up at her with guilt and regret in his eyes.

"I didn't know how to tell you. Corn was such an important person to you, Ren was someone who you looked up to in the acting world. I couldn't let you down. When I saw you in Guam, I intended to leave so you wouldn't figure out my identity but when I saw how sad and shocked you were…I couldn't do that to you. I can't hurt you anymore by lying to you. I can't let you enter into a relationship with me unless you know the truth. I deeply apologize Mogami-san."

"Kyoko," Kyoko said as she looked at him, somehow she didn't feel that angry with him. She felt a little hurt and confused, but seeing his honesty and looking _through_ the burn, she didn't want to dislike him at all. It was as if all her inner-angels were cheering her on. "I want you to call me Kyoko."

Kuon looked at her, "Even after you've known that I've lied to you?" he asked and then gestured to his face, "Even with this. Are you saying that you still want to be my girlfriend?"

Kyoko nodded, "I told you that I don't consider love frivolously. I love you. No matter what skeletons might be in your closet, I love you, Kuon," she said as she saw him smile a little. "Your face doesn't matter to me aside from if it brings you pain."

"The doctors are saying that it is improbable that they can fix it," Kuon tried to tell her and Kyoko came closer. She noticed how Kuon spread his arms out and she walked into his hold, letting her own arms wrap around him. "So I'm not going to be a great actor. I'm not going to be this special person who you look up to anymore."

Kyoko laughed softly, "You'll always be special and amazing to me. Remember how you played the piano in Dark Moon, you learned so quickly and I know you'll learn something else. You'll become great at something else. It's not your status I love, it's your kindness, your warmth, your maturity mixed with your teasing, but most of all I love how supportive you are of me and how easy I feel it is to talk to you. Now that I know you're my treasured Corn as well, do you think I could just leave you and forget?"

Kuu smiled at Julie who was still looking surprised at the kind of love and devotion that this seventeen-year-old was expressing. She blinked as Kyoko very very gently placed a kiss on the burnt side of Kuon's face and let her head rest on his shoulder right next to it.

This girl really was a wonderful person.

….

….

About an hour later, Kyoko was just about to leave Kuon. She held his hand and let her thumb rub over the back of it. She smiled as she thought about how he was returning her love so easily. "Kuon," she said as he hummed. "Are you going to be okay if I go?" she asked since Kuu and Julie had given the two of them some space. "You're not going to forget how much you mean to me, are you?"

"I'll hold your love right here," he told her as he pressed his hand to his heart, the doctors had told him that he could soon get the burnt side of his face covered. "Will you be back?"

Kyoko nodded, "Not today, but tomorrow I can come," she blushed before looking at him shyly. "Kuon, may I kiss you?" she asked as she turned red. Even though he was both Corn and Ren whilst also being Kuon, she wondered if she was moving too fast in the relationship. After all, Kuon was only partially Japanese and had grown up in America, he was probably used to relationships moving faster.

Kuon smiled and leaned towards her, turning his face as much as he could so she wouldn't have to face the burn. Kyoko slid her hands to his neck and turned his head so she could see both sides. She kissed his lips as he returned the kiss and smiled. The burnt part of his face was a little disturbing, but she knew what he had looked like. She would do her best to support him now that he looked different as well.

As she walked to the door and opened it, she froze as she saw one of the guys she really didn't like. She was so shocked to see him, so shocked that he had managed to get through security, and maybe even Kuu and Julie, that she hadn't noticed his phone in his hand and that he had taken two shots of Kuon's face and then clicked the upload button.

Kyoko looked at Kuon and then turned to Shou. She protectively stood in front of Kuon, not realizing that it was now too late to stop the world from having access to his appearance. "What the hell are you doing here, you asshole?" she hissed.

"I wanted to see the damage and it's worse than I thought. It's good to see that the beloved actor and model looks repulsive now. My stomach is churning just from looking at -" Shou was shocked when Kyoko slapped him _hard._

"How dare you?" Kyoko said in a cold manner. "Do you even know what he's been through? You know, despite how I don't want to admit that you were right, I _am_ in love with him and true love means being able to look past the scars to the person underneath, not that _you'd_ know anything about love.

"I know that you're lying, how could you love a face like that?" Shou asked before getting an alert on his phone that ten people had unfollowed him. Maybe twenty people had unfollowed Tsuruga, Tsuruga had ten times as many followers as he did, soon he would have ten times less.

"How? Because Ren supports me," Kyoko said, careful to use his stage name. "Because he respects me, he encourages my growth as an actress, he makes sure that I feel safe, he listens to me and lets me cry. I would love to tell you how much I pity you that you've never felt a love like I have for Ren, but I don't have enough words to say it."

Shou turned his phone around to show Kyoko that he had posted the picture of Kuon online and people were commenting about it. Kyoko looked back at Kuon and noticed the light was leaving his eyes. She pushed Shou again, her eyes dark and unforgiving.

"You asshole," she whispered before seeing that his follower count kept decreasing. Maybe they were seeing him for the cold idiot that he was."

She looked back at Kuon's phone, which had been recovered from the fire, and she saw Kuon nervously turn it on. His facial expression changed into one of bewilderment as he read the alert, there were seventy new people who were following him and he had received over a hundred messages with condolences and people telling him that they were rooting for him to get better and that his face didn't matter, they still loved the Ren Tsuruga they had seen behind the scenes and in magazines.

Maybe these were just sympathetic followers, but since he would have to leave acting, he did appreciate them. Kyoko quickly looked back and caught the new follower count and the messages to him. She came to sit beside him and read them with him, there was only a small number of comments insulting him and people were defending him to those individuals.

"They love you nearly as much I do," she told him as she kissed his shoulder. "See," she pointed to a few comments, "These people say that they'll follow you if you choose to step away from acting. They're saying that they know that whatever you choose to do next, they know you'll be amazing. She saw Kuon refresh the page where he received even more followers and even more positive messages.

She looked at Shou as he refreshed _his_ page and looked stunned.

"What is it? You losing followers? People see the way you bully and attack and can't stand for it?" She asked with a superior smirk. "People can see the true Ren Tsuruga just as they are now seeing the true Shou Fuwa. Seems I picked the right guy, I don't need somebody who the public despises, I need someone who is kind enough and warm enough and has enough charm and charisma that people don't care what they look like, they are just excited to see the man who he really is."

Shou frowned and then took a step backwards, "You'll regret this, Tsuruga," he said as he left the hospital. Kuon put his phone down and Kyoko looked at him. She knew that she needed to go but she was worried about whether he would be okay or not. She could see the light return to his eyes.

"Do you see how many people love you?" she asked him and Kuon looked at her and nodded.

"It's good that so many people support me," he told her, "but the only person who I need to fall in love with me is you."

Kyoko nodded, "Just remember that, okay?" she asked, "When you feel sad or feel like giving up, just remember that I love you."

 **End Chapter Three**

 **AN2:** Thank you everyone who reads and supports this fic. The next fic that I'm going to work on for a few days is 'The Little Prince'. Special shout out to reviewers of Chapter Two: **brennakai, ktoll9, and Michiyo**


	5. Chapter 4 - I'd like to use him

**AN:** I know I said I'd work on my other fics, but I'm still going through some really low/depressed moods :/ so because this one is making me happy I'm going to stay with it. I hope you enjoy

 **Chapter Four:** I'd like to use him

Kyoko sighed as she entered her high school, it wouldn't be too long until she had graduated and when she had that degree in her hands she would feel a sense of fulfillment. She wondered if that's how Kuon had felt when he had been named the top actor in Japan. She looked down as she thought about how he had been when he was unable to capture Katsuki and how she was afraid of him turning into sand and getting carried away on a breeze. He would take care of himself, right? The burn on his face didn't determine who he was.

Maybe she would be able to talk to him after her classes, maybe that would help her if she knew he knew she wasn't leaving. That had to do it. As she entered the school and walked down the hallway, her eyes caught hold of what that idiot, Mimori, was holding and passing out. She couldn't get a good look but she had thought -

Kyoko stood in front of the Shou Fuwa fangirl and looked at her with a hand out.

Mimori pulled the papers in towards her and stuck her tongue out, looking very annoyed, "You don't get any. Nobody invited you to have one of these, you always cause trouble especially when it comes to Sh-"

Kyoko looked at the younger girl and raised an eyebrow, "So, am I to assume that you're looking at pictures of Fuwa. If so, I'm not interested unless they are embarrassing," Kyoko said before Mimori looked up at her again.

"That's not it" she told the auburn-haired girl, "Shou-chan doesn't look so disgusting."

Kyoko's eyes narrowed, her first thoughts seemed to be confirmed. "Did you see how many followers your precious Fuwa lost when he tried to take on Tsuruga-san," she said. "I doubt that you're going to influence his career an-" Kyoko stopped as she heard two girls laughing.

"He looks disgusting, like that horror movie guy from America, the one who can enter your dreams and kill you from the inside," one of the younger girls laughed as her friend pushed her.

"Wasn't he ranked one of the hottest guys in Japan, well maybe he can be half-hot," she said coldly and Kyoko felt her anger burn up inside of her. She started to feel her grudges surrounding her and pinpointed them on Mimori.

Kyoko held out her hand and looked at the younger girl with a look that paralyzed her. "Give me one of those papers," she said as Mimori's hand shook and she gave it to her. Kyoko looked at the picture of Kuon on the front cover with the title: 'A sickening behind the scenes with Ren Tsuruga'.

"You do know this line isn't legitimate" Kyoko said as she looked at the paper. She could understand why these women were saying this, they didn't know Kuon like she did. Kyoko looked at the pained picture and felt the tears in her eyes.

"You can't say that you want Shou-chan," Mimori said as Kyoko glared at her.

"Like I would want someone who looks _that_ revolting," she said, "My boyfriend is handsome and sweet and kind and so much better than Fuwa, you can take him."

"You're lying," Mimori said as Kyoko stiffened again. "You don't have a boyfriend, who would want to be the boyfriend to somebody like you."

"Maybe the person whose picture you're throwing around who is sweet and kind and generous and always takes time to help people even if he's sick and the actress can't remember her lines. Even if he's in a situation like that, he cares about her and he cares about the crew and doing the scene right. Do you know how many people will actually thank all the members of the crew once a shoot is done and _especially_ someone at Ren's level," Kyoko said proudly as she stood in defense of _her_ Corn.

Mimori laughed, "Makes sense, put all the monsters together in a cage and keep them locked up."

Kyoko frowned and took deep breaths to try to steady herself, "He's not a monster, but I wouldn't mind an attempt at scratching your eyes out," she whispered in a growl that only Mimori could hear. The brunette girl flinched as Kyoko walked away. She would do whatever she could to protect Kuon.

…..

…..

Lory stared ahead of him and at the desk where he had Kuon's files spread out in front of him. Even to the people close to him, there wasn't any denying how the burns made him look. Lory just wished that the tabloids had waited until he was out of the hospital to try to sell their magazines. As much as he looked at the burn, it did look like, unless Kuon could get it fixed with a skin graft, his days of acting were over. Lory was also angry that he hadn't heard that they were publishing this which must mean the usual paparazzi didn't take this picture.

He sighed as he let his fingers run over the burnt side of the face. If a person told him this wasn't extremely bad for the twenty-one-year-old, they were lying through their teeth. If only he could get Kuon settled into an office or teaching job. He knew he could open up some options for him to stay at LME but would that hurt him further, to be around acting without being able to act.

He knew Kuon well enough to know that he would find some way of covering the burns, that would lead to continued acceptance at LME, but there was no protecting his face from this. Lory wanted justice for the man who felt like a second son to him. That was why he had sent five men, three to America and two to stay in Japan, to track down the gang who had attempted to kill him.

He kept hearing that they were getting closer and that they had apprehended four members in Japan, but vermin like this always did like to hide within the woodwork. He sighed as he studied how Kuon's entire left side of his face had blistered over, how his mouth was fine though. He noticed the way it was healing, the blood that had burst over it. It looked like an extremely realistic Halloween disguise.

As he was looking at the pictures, Lory heard his phone ring and frowned. It was most likely Kuu and if his friend needed an outlet then he would provide it for him, it was the least he could do. He had really screwed this up. He should have known that Ren would only come to him if he was desperate.

If he had started the search for these gang members before, the incident most likely wouldn't have happened.

As he gazed at the phone, Lory blinked and then hesitated in trying to decide whether to pick it up or not. The caller was Shingai Seiji and hearing about a great opportunity for one of his other clients would be depressing if he was looking at pictures of Kuon. Reluctantly, Lory took the call.

"Hello," he sighed, "How can I help you."

"I'm calling about Ren," Seiji said, "I felt it was only right to -"

"LME will be paying the contract fee although I really don't think that it's necessary since Ren just accepted your job," Lory said as Seiji hesitated.

"I'd like to use him," he said as Lory stood up. Was this a joke? "Of course not for the role of the protagonist, but if he's okay with being cast as the antagonist, I think I can make it work."

"Have you seen the recent pictures of him? These burn marks cannot be covered by makeup without possibility of infection," Lory said as he touched the picture of Kuon again.

"I've seen them. I know my nature to exploit a situation, but I also know the value that comes from having Tsuruga, a very hard working and highly skilled actor, in my movie. Did you know that not only has Ren had messages of support spanning magazines, talk shows, and social media, but that his own follower count has risen more than five-hundred people who are in support of him," Seiji said, "How could I not -"

"So the only reason you are interested in Ren is because you want to cash in on him whilst he's popular? You want to make him the villain of your piece so you can take advantage of his appearance," Lory said, his voice sounding cold.

"Wow," Seiji said on the other end of the line, "I don't mean any offense by this, but you are being protective of him, maybe too much so. Listen, I know that times are tough on Ren right now, all I can offer him is an antagonist role because of his face, that's true, but I can rewrite it so that his appearance is part of the character. I'm not doing this because it's on trend. I am doing this because you have to admit that you can't find many young actors with the discipline, maturity, work ethic, and most of all _talent_ of Ren Tsuruga. That isn't something that is part of his appearance and I'd rather find a place where my film can shine _because_ of Ren than replace him with an immature actor who is only half as talented as him."

"Even so, with his appearance I believe that your movie will suffer," Lory said bluntly. "I do not want you to use Ren for this project," he said, not wanting someone to take advantage of Ren's suffering. He looked down, "I refuse to allow this. I will be speaking to Ren personally when he gets out of the hospital about the future of his acting career, good day," he said before hanging up and putting two fingers on his forehead.

He didn't trust in what the director was saying. However, Seiji hadn't been lying. He was willing to call again just to have Ren's talent at hand. Hopefully the outside hadn't caused the same thing to happen on the inside.

…..

…..

Kyoko very nervously followed into the president's office. She had been told that Lory wanted to meet with her privately and go over some confidential information concerning Kuon. She wasn't sure how to feel but she wanted the best for her new boyfriend. She bowed quickly as she approached the president, "You wanted to discuss…Ren," she said after a pause trying to choose the best name for him.

"Kyoko, I hope it doesn't come as much of a shock to you that Ren won't be acting anymore, I don't think that he'll find -"

"It's okay," Kyoko interrupted. She knew it was rude to interrupt him, but she knew how much Kuon came alive when he acted and she couldn't handle hearing that he'd never again be able to follow his passion. "I know. We've actually discussed it and I think it's going to be a hard transition but he'll find a new passion. I trust that he'll be alright eventually."

"And how are you doing?" Lory asked as Kyoko allowed herself to relax.

"I told him that I love him," she smiled as she looked down. She knew that the president would have questions for her and she wasn't sure how much he knew already. Maybe he had suspected Kuon of loving her for a while.

"And how did he take that?" Lory asked as Kyoko smiled.

"He told me that he loves me back," Kyoko smiled as she thought about how her heart had lit up when she heard that.

"Good, he's going to need someone there to support him," Lory said as Kyoko nodded, she was unaware that there _were_ directors who were willing to work with the burn to get the talent that Ren provided them with.

 **End of Chapter Four**

 **AN2:** Thank you to the people who read and support this fic, it means a lot to me. Special shout out to: **brennakai, Crazy4Animation, ktoll9, and Michiyo** for reviewing the previous chapter


	6. Chapter 5 - A normal existence (Trigger)

**AN:** First of all a **trigger warning** and I don't mean that as a pun. This chapter includes gun violence, suicidal thought and action, and depression. If any of these are a trigger for you, please skip this chapter and I'll recap it at the beginning of next. For those of you continuing to read, thank you and I hope you enjoy.

 **Chapter Five – A normal existence**

Whilst Kyoko had been going to school and trying to live a normal existence, things weren't so normal for the Hizuris and especially for Kuon. Despite having the love for the woman that he cared for so deeply, Kuon wasn't able to deny his self-hatred especially with these coils of burnt flesh on his face. This was part of his punishment, wasn't it? A burden that he had to carry because of what had happened to all those who he had hurt? Now everyone could see that the inside was just as ugly as the outside.

"Damn," Kuon said as he took a deep breath and let his body move onto the bed as he looked up at the ceiling. He looked at the tiles and tried to close his eyes. It would get easier to carry the burden one day. It had to get easier than being repulsed and feeling alienated by his own appearance. He had let everyone down.

With a deep breath in, Kuon finally allowed himself to sleep. He wondered if the nerves in his face would ever mend, if the damage would always be there. Maybe, if Kyoko left him, he could end it all. Would Rick forgive him under these circumstances if he did so?

Kuon finally allowed his eyes to close and he took another deep breath in, finding himself falling asleep.

….

…..

Crash!

Kuon woke up completely startled as he heard a crash in his hospital room, he quickly got himself into a position of defense though part of him was wondering whether it would be better to let them kill him. He tried to settle himself before seeing that there _was_ another person in the room but, though he couldn't tell who this person was, it wasn't threatening.

"[Hey, it's me]" a male voice said in English as Kuon looked very confused.

"[Dad?"] the brunette Hizuri asked shocked as he flicked a light on and saw his father attempting to pick something up off the ground. "[What are you doing here? Isn't it-it must be after visiting hours. Did you…break in?]"

"[I'm Kuu Hizuri,]" he told him as Kuon paused. He was stunned that his father would make such an excuse.

"[and that gives you the access to hospitals after visiting hours?]" he asked and Kuu smiled.

"[if you find the right people to ask, in this country it does. I'm glad you are still speaking English,]" he said with two thumbs up as Kuon stared at him bewildered.

"[It's my first language. I use English quite a lot,]" Kuon continued to whisper, "[and so do many of the doctors at this hospital who would be much more likely to think that a Western accent sounds like the person shouldn't be here than a Japanese one.]"

Kuu sighed and then sat down, "[Is it easier for you to talk in Japanese?]" he asked and Kuon sighed.

"[It depends. I spent so long speaking in Japanese that now I have to remind myself of how I used to say things. Maybe if I dye my hair it will make it easier,]" he attempted to joke and Kuu nodded.

"Japanese then," he said as he switched back to his own native tongue. "I was worried. I can't help it when I'm worried, I have to get to the problem, you've _always_ known that about me."

"I've always known that you eat," Kuon said weakly before he looked up. "Even if I try to pick it off…" he sighed as he looked up and Kuu exhaled deeply.

"You'll hurt yourself, dig into bone, cause even more damage that can't be repaired. I know I sound like a granny but don't touch it, Kuon, please?" he asked with his eyes showing how much he was pleading for his son to stay still. "Listen, I know that Boss is setting you up in a safe house until we know what to do in this situation, but he asked me if I would go as well. I didn't give him an answer -"

"because you don't want to feel disgusted every time I enter a room, I ca-"

"I want my son to not feel as if he's losing his independence," Kuu said as he reached out a hand for Kuon.

"It's alright if you're there," Kuon said as Kuu nodded with a relieved smile. "Dad, this isn't going to be good for your image either. When people see th-"

"Let's let me worry or not worry about my image, we need to find out how to minimize the damage," he said before tilting the chair back.

"Can I ask where mom is during all of this?" Kuon asked as he looked at his dad and then sighed and rolled his eyes. Kuu saw his son's face and took it as a challenge. He pulled the chair over to the side where Kuon's face was burnt and set it down. He gave a smile to his son.

"She's doing alright. She's happy knowing that your safe and Boss has already set up some guards," Kuu said as Kuon nodded.

"If anything happens to her -"

"Nothing will, you just worry about you," Kuu repeated as his eyes never left his little boy's face.

…..

…..

After Kyoko had gone to see the president, which had left her to question a few things and if she should bring it up to Kuon, she made her way to the hospital. She knew that she needed to read over a script and finish her homework and unless she did it there, she would have to leave earlier than she wanted to. She had brought a copy of that horrible magazine that Mimori had been giving out as well as some articles that had been sent to the president for him to sign off on.

She took a deep inhale and then let it out, if she was different and hadn't gone through the experiences she had, would she have made such comments about Kuon's face? She really hoped that she wouldn't. The amount of kindness and help that both Corn and Ren had given her had helped her live her life, she couldn't – no _wouldn't_ let that go unappreciated. It was the person behind the burns who was most important anyway.

As she entered the hospital, Kyoko was surprised to see that, instead of visiting his son, Kuu was waiting for her to come in. She paused and saw the concerned look on his face so went up to him. "Hello, Father," she attempted to smile despite the severity of his expression. "How are you doing today?"

"Kyoko," Kuu said as he looked at her, "Did I ever tell you that I hate guns?"

"You've told me before that you hate violence, I thought that hating guns was a part of that," Kyoko said as Kuu looked down and closed his eyes.

"I don't agree with violence, you're definitely right about that, but have I told you why I _specifically_ can't stand guns?" he asked her and Kyoko shook her head.

"I don't think you've gone into depth about it, no" she replied as Kuu looked down, his eyes showing a lot of pain in the subject. He sighed.

"I haven't told you about my adolescent years, I know that much. I was a teenage actor, true, but before that I never told you about the rage that I carried against the world, how meeting Julie, her giving birth to Kuon completely changed my mind and my behavior." He sighed as he stared in front of him, "There was a reason why I was able to play gang members and bad boys so well so early in my career. I suppose that my son and I have a lot alike, what you might not know is that although Kuon is a better gymnast than me, I'm actually stronger than him."

Kyoko smiled, "Sorry Father, but seeing Kuon the way he is now, I can't imagine that being the case. You should have seen –"

"Kyoko, can we move this conversation outside?" Kuu said and Kyoko blinked again. She wanted to argue and she wanted to spend more time with Kuon so that he didn't feel alone. She had already arrived later than she had originally planned. However, Kuu seemed to hold this talk with such importance. She couldn't let him down.

"Okay," she said and Kuu looked in her eyes.

"It's alright, Julie is with him right now. He's going to be okay. Julie is – well with all the time that Kuon has spent away from us, she's quite over-protective of him and I'd say maybe I'm the same." He gestured that Kyoko should follow him and automatically the seventeen-year-old did so.

When they had found a quiet spot where they would be undisturbed, Kuu looked down at the ground. He took a deep breath in to prepare himself and then started, "Kyoko, from what you know about me, do I seem the kind of father who would willingly send their child to a foreign country with, yes a friend, but not me. Do I seem the kind of person that would cut off contact with my kid without even trying?"

Kyoko paused and shook her head, "With how much you care about Kuon, I don't think that it's likely for you to do that," she said, "which must mean that he must have been really bad. I think I've seen it before, he just can't move and it's as if he's looking at something and you can't get through to him. It's almost as if he's comatose."

"Exactly," Kuu said as he looked down, "We took him to the hospital a couple of times for that, different hospitals," he said not wanting to specifically say that they had tried to put him in a mental ward for a few days in case it helped his condition. "He punishes himself, if he gets too far into it, he can't breathe and it's as if he's reached this other plain of existence. That's not the worst part though. I'm not sure how much he's told you, but I hope you can keep it confidential that I've told you this," he said and Kyoko put a hand up.

"Father, if it's not important then I'd prefer to wait for Kuon to tell me himself, I want to respect his privacy. I don't think it's right for me to pry –" Kyoko said as she tried to be a good girlfriend, in Japan it was wrong to look into other people's past when they didn't want you to. She didn't quite understand why Kuu wasn't doing this.

"He's attempted to kill himself in the past," Kuu said as Kyoko froze. "It was near the time when I contacted Lory," he said with such pain in his eyes, "There was this one moment when I had to knock him unconscious and after that we had to monitor his every movement and lock everything that he could use to harm himself away and carry the keys on us."

Kyoko paused as tears came to her eyes, she could imagine this but she had never really thought about it before. She watched Kuu, unable to say anything.

"There was one day when I came home and I found a suicide note on the table, most of it apologizing for being a bad friend, a bad son, a bad person. He kept saying that Julie and I deserved better than what he could give to us. He talked about how he was an animal, a mur—a bad person, and how he needed to get rid of the evil that had lurked in our house," Kuu's body started to shake as he continued this story. "I didn't know it had become that bad," he admitted, "I didn't understand how much he was suffering until I saw it. He was outside with a gun."

Kyoko's body tensed and she stared at Kuu with a horrified expression.

"I ran as fast as I could to get to him. I needed to convince him of how good a person he was and, if he didn't believe that, what kind of person he had the potential of becoming. As soon as I got there, he was picking up the gun and pointing it as his head. He had started to say goodbye to me and how he couldn't handle being a disappointment on the Hizuri name and I managed to use skill, strength, and accuracy and not only did I knock the gun out of his hand before it fired, I knocked him out." Kuu looked at his hands as he had tears in his own eyes. "After that, sending him to Japan and staying out of contact with him, though I did talk to Boss about him to make sure he was alive, it didn't seem such a bad option. If he could make a new life for himself then it was better than him dying."

Kyoko felt the tears in her own eyes, "Why are you telling me this, Father?" she asked as she couldn't stop the tears from trickling down her cheeks.

"There was a look in his eyes at that time, I can remember it, the way that his eyes shone in the sun, the specks of sienna that were in the emerald color. I can remember that haunted look as if his life was over." He looked at Kyoko, "I saw that same look today."

Kyoko paused and paled. She didn't want to betray Kuon, but the president _needed_ to know about this.

 **End Chapter Five**

 **AN2:** I'm finally getting over my late night depression 😊 but I still have a pretty busy week with school and work and homework so I'll be working on some other fics next week. Thank you of course to all those who support this fic and a special shout out to **brennakai** and **paulagato** for their support on the last chapter. I can't believe that I've now been on fanfiction net for over fifteen-years, I started in June 2002 as mysticsorceror and even this account is pretty old 😊 good times.


	7. Chapter 6 -Don't you dare leave me, Kuon

**AN:** Hope you guys enjoy this chapter 😊  
Here's the promised recap of the previous chapter: Kuu sneaks into Kuon's hospital room to spend time with him. Kuu talks to Kyoko about how he fears Kuon is going to hurt himself because of an incident that happened when Kuon was fifteen.

 **Chapter Six -** Don't you dare leave me, Kuon

Kyoko already knew that this wasn't her place to interfere, but she couldn't allow herself to learn that story and not do anything to help her boyfriend. She sat quietly as she gazed at her phone, allowing her thumb to run over the front of it. The president had done a lot for her, he had helped her with her acting, helped her with her school, and given her plenty of advice. He had also done many things for Kuon's sake. He _had_ to have some desire to help him.

Kyoko took a deep breath and dialed the number where she could reach him. As it was picked up and transferred, Kyoko felt her body tense up.

"Hello, this is Takarada" he said and Kyoko closed his eyes.

"President," she said nervously, "I…umm…I…well this is Kyoko. I'm really really worried about – I hope this is a good time to call and not an inconvenience to you – I'm just – sorry if this isn't okay -." Kyoko paused, she had to get her words out. This was to help Kuon and she needed to not be intimidated. "Kuon is acting as if he might hurt himself or let himself get hurt. He's…well Kuu-sama thinks that he might be thinking about ending his life. I don't know if I'm strong enough to stop him."

The president sighed on the other side of the line, "I didn't know that Kuon was such a shallow person to only care about his appearance," he said and Kyoko's eyes widened.

"No, I don't think that's it. I mean…yes, he's had to look good for the modelling shoots and I…I mean, he still looks attractive but the wound is…it does show prominently, but I think if it was just like a cut or something that he could cover up, he wouldn't be hurting. I think that his dream has been taken away and that's why he's feeling hopeless and it's not my place to say anything other than that I'm really worried about him," Kyoko closed her eyes. She had to get through this without thinking she was inconveniencing him. If she started to think about that then it would be much much harder to have this conversation. This was for Kuon.

Lory sighed deeply, "Alright, I'll try to think of something but I think that your presence should be enough. I'd like to see Kuu and Julie if you would be able to give them that message," he said and Kyoko nodded before realizing she was on the phone.

"Of course," she said before closing her eyes. "I really hope he can get better but I don't think that my staying beside him will be enough. I think he needs help."

"I'll do my best, is there anything else I can help you with?" Lory asked and Kyoko took a deep breath in.

"No, that's all. I hope I didn't cause an inconvenience," she said before hanging up and taking deep inhales and exhales. She really hoped that Kuon wouldn't get angry at her for that call and for showing such concern over him. What she cared about most was him being okay and _alive_.

…..

…..

After finishing the phone call, Kyoko looked down at her bag and nodded. She'd stay up late tonight and try to talk to Kuon. She could deny herself some sleep if it meant that there would be a future for them to have together. She lifted her head up and went into the hospital.

As she approached Kuon's room, she knocked on the door frame and then gave him a serious look, her eyes showing her fear as he turned to her confused. "Hey," she said, "please be honest with me, Kuon, how are you doing today?"

"I'm doing fine," he said as he reached out for her hand, "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Kuon, you are _not_ doing alright," she said as she took his hand anyway and came to sit down next to him. "I…" she looked up to see the Tsuruga-san smile and her eyes narrowed, "I don't trust that smile. I know that you're not doing alright and I don't like that you feel you need to keep things from me. I understand that you always have, but after you were attacked, drugged, bound, and burned, there's absolutely no way that you're just coping alright."

"I've been in worse scrapes before," he told her, "one time I was left bleeding in an alley and I had to make my own way home," he said, having forgotten that both his parents were in the room and that they hated to be reminded of these things.

"Okay, you've been hurt badly before which is nothing to make light of, but you've never had damage like you do now," she told him and Kuon paused. He knew that at least _that_ was true. "You love acting, I can't believe that you are just 'okay' without it."

"I do love acting," he nodded, "but I love you too. Kyoko, you know that I love you, right? I mean you do trust that I do at least."

"Okay, I know it, you've proved it to me as both Ren and as Corn," she said as she looked at him as she had before he had gained the burn. It wasn't that it was now bandaged up, it was because she had become used to it. She didn't care what he looked like, but she knew that he did and that's what hurt most about seeing it. "Don't you dare leave me, Kuon," she said as Kuon stared at her a little taken aback. "If you leave me. If you hurt me like Fuwa, like my mother, I won't forgive you. I will still love you but if you kill yourself, I won't forgive you _ever_."

Kuon stared at her wide eyed and then looked down guiltily, "I have no plans to kill myself," he told her, "but…" he trailed off, unsure whether to say what was going through his head.

"But you might? But you can't stop it? Are you really that weak?" Kyoko asked with her hands turning into fists at her side. "I know that you're one of the strongest people that I have ever met. I know you have a past that you're attempting to escape. I know that you feel like you being detached from the world is sometimes better for you. I've come to learn that about you and I've come to accept it, but nobody goes through what you've gone through because they are weak-minded. You're strong and I won't forgive you if you use some excuse that you felt weak."

Tears were now falling down her face and Kuon looked up at her with guilt in his eye. He pulled her closer to him and she immediately let him pull her into his arms. Julie was watching the two of them with tears in her eyes as Kuu wanted to reach out and touch his son but was holding himself back.

"I've thought about it," Kuon told her honestly, "I'm fighting against those thoughts but I know that, at this point of my life, I wouldn't be able to do it and I don't want to do it. I want to be with you, Kyoko, if you'll let me."

"As if you have to ask for permission, idiot," Kyoko whispered into his chest. She had never thought that she'd feel so close to Tsuruga-san in such a short amount of time into their relationship. Then again, she had never thought that Corn and Tsuruga were the same person.

"I've been thinking about something else," Kuon told her and Kyoko hummed, "What do you think about seiyuus?" he asked as Kyoko felt a grin explode onto her face and she grinned up at him with excitement.

"That's a great idea, Kuon" she said. She knew that there had to be some way of acting and though she knew that this was only a second-choice to actually using his whole body to create the character, using his voice would at least allow him to take the role of multiple characters without his face being seen.

"If no directors will offer me roles in projects that require me to be on scene, I might be able to find a way around it. If I keep my face covered so that I don't -" Kuon attempted to explain to her and Kyoko nodded, cutting him off nonverbally. She reached up to his cheek and nervously kissed him, she still wasn't able to do that without a blush turning her whole face red…maybe if she slipped into character she'd be able to.

"See," she said as she took his hand, rubbing her thumb up and down the back of it. "You're already so much smarter than Shou, you're not giving up and I think the president is managing to track down the gang who attacked you so you'll be safe. You just have to keep motivated."

"I'm thankful that Kuon has someone like you," Julie told her as Kyoko blushed again and bowed her head.

"Umm…the president wanted to talk to the two of you. I'll stay here with Kuon," she told them as Kuu looked to his wife.

"Well, it seems that we've been summoned."

…..

…..

Lory hummed as he saw the concerned parents on the sofa opposite him. He could see how Julie kept shooting him harsh looks, her look was more than that Lory hadn't helped Kuon, it was that he hadn't kept him safe and the feeling that if he hadn't taken him, that Kuon would be alive and back in America already. This was the kidnapper who had taken her son away from her and she was angry with her husband that even after he did that, Kuu was still friends with him.

"I know that you're feeling that -" Lory began but was cut off almost immediately.

"You were supposed to keep him safe," Julie told him. "I know that he wasn't your biggest priority, but you were at least supposed to keep him safe. Imagine if his manager hadn't found the fire, imagine if he had burned to death in there. You wouldn't care, you'd just think that someone had died and you wouldn't care that we gave you a responsibility for him."

"Julie," Kuu said as he attempted to touch her arm, "Boss is doing everything he -"

"You at least got to punch him," Julie said. "I just had to sit at a hospital, hoping that my little boy was alright and that I would be able to see him. This man took him away to try to chase after his dreams which I had made my peace with but as soon as things got real he made sure they were taken away from him."

"Is there no chance of him acting again?" Kuu asked as he looked from Julie to Lory. "Any role? There have to be some minor ones or even one-liners, there has to be some director out there who has seen how talented he is. I mean, I would say that he's more talented than I am and I'm quite a proud person when it comes to my acting skill."

"I can't think of any director who would still want to use him," Lory lied, he felt that it was safer for Kuon's emotional stability for him not to be placed in front of a camera anymore. He didn't want him to be torn down by the media.

"They're all hypocrites," Julie said, "They won't even consider putting a mask on, binding him with bandages and using makeup on top to show it as real. People wear masks all the time to become space aliens but skin is out of the question? _I've_ even worn masks on my face when modelling. I know that it's possible even if there isn't a skin graft."

Lory looked down, "I think that's out of the question," he said although now he was coming up with ideas of his own to get Kuon onto the set again. "I did however manage to think of one way for him to cope with his depression."

"I think that right now we'd prefer to avoid putting him on medication," Kuu said as he reached across for his wife.

Lory stood up and went to get a box, "So do I, but I feel that Kuon needs to connect with the world somehow," he said before lifting the lid of the box to reveal what was inside.

 **End Chapter Six**

 **AN2:** Thank you so much to those supporting and reading this story, it means a lot to me. Special shoutout to the Chapter Five reviewers: **brennakai, Michiyo, and paulagato**


	8. Chapter 7 - Kuon is more of a dog person

**AN:** I'm not sure if you guys have noticed, but I'm trying to keep my Skip Beat fics updated. There are still a couple more that I want to update to complete that task, but it also proved to me that I love writing this particular fic. I hope you guys enjoy reading as much as I do writing 😊

 **Chapter Seven –** Kuon is more of a dog person

Kuu's eyes were lit up by the excitement of Lory having a plan to help Kuon feel that he was alive again, however Julie looked skeptical. Was this some kind of plan with pictures? Was there a model of a house or a car or a time machine that would help his acting career? Other than being able to step back into work, Julie wasn't sure what the plan would be. An option to return as an actor was most likely not what was in that box.

Kuu leaned forwards as the lid was lifted and the Hizuri parents looked at the creature that was in the box.

Inside of this mysterious box was a kitten who looked like he had just reached the age where he could be separated by his mother. He was a yellow cat but there was a dark brown splodge over half its face. There were other tiny dots but the fact that this cat had a face that looked similar to Kuon's was as if this man was insulting them.

"It's cute," Kuu said as he reached out to pet the animal on the head, but Julie stood. She was extremely angry now. This man had the ability to call directors, talk to the media, get whatever he wanted and he was offering a _cat_ to someone that he had screwed over, someone who looked at him as somewhat of a father figure.

"What is my son going to do with that?" she asked as she tried to keep her voice from scaring the tiny animal. "My son has worked himself to the bone for you. He came to you when he needed help but you spent too long on your plans to help him. He has made a lot of money for you agency and he has had to tell himself that he might never be able to act on a set again and you think that giving him a cat makes everything better?" she asked as she looked at him in horror. Was this man psychotic?

"Julie, you gave Kuon a turtle once when you wanted to find some way of him bonding with an ani-" Kuu tried to act as a mediator between the two of them.

"Yes. A friend of mine said they helped with depression so I wanted to see his reaction, but he didn't get to have a reaction because his father boiled the turtle alive thinking that it was for dinner," Julie sighed. She knew that she and Kuu had argued about this before and it was old news, but Kuu had been the one to bring it up. It had ended up with both of them laughing but the situation that was occurring at _this_ moment wasn't a laughing matter.

"It's a shame because if we can't find a home for him, he's going to have to be put down," Lory said dramatically.

"It's okay, we can take him," Kuu said as Julie glared at him. She rolled her eyes before storming out the room as Kuu took the cat into his arms. He didn't know how this was going to help Kuon, but it would mean that he wasn't alone in the house and that he might be able to take care of an animal. Maybe that was it, the distraction of being responsible for another life was to keep Kuon grounded and provide for him reasons not to give up. "Can I just ask…why not a puppy?" he inquired.

Lory looked out, "I want to motivate him to take care of himself, but I don't want to force him out of the house which makes the cat ideal," he tried to explain. "I do think that Kuon is more of a dog person but going out for him before he's accepted his condition is going to be hard for him. That cat might really help him."

Kuu took a weak breath before nodding. Hopefully Julie could be talked around to the idea soon.

…..

…..

Julie was making her way down the hallway with a similar fire burning behind her to the ones that Kyoko had burning behind her. She was pissed and she didn't care who saw it. Her son had been hurt and if the kidnapper had reacted sooner and realized that Kuon would have tried everything he could before coming to him, he would be safe. Couldn't that kidnapper prohibit him from returning to his own apartment or put a guard there with him. Kuon should never have been allowed to return to the apartment before the gang who wanted him dead was caught.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that none of this would have happened if he had just not returned home.

As she was walking, Julie saw a man who had become familiar to her though the two of them had never met. She made her strides longer and soon she was right beside the man who had been pointed out to her as her son's manager and the man who had stopped him from burning to death.

"Hi," she smiled as Yashiro looked at her, pausing awkwardly. "You're the young man who saved my son, aren't you?" she asked as Yashiro's eyes widened.

"You're -" he said breathlessly and Julie sighed before smiling.

"Yes, my husband is very well known and he has a lot of fans, from the way you're acting, I think you are one of them. However, you saved my son's life. It's because of you that he wasn't hurt worse, that he's not going to have any debilitating conditions aside from the burn on his face." Julie said before dropping into a bow reminiscent of Kyoko's, "It is an honor to meet you, Yukihito-san" she said before pulling up and smiling as if Aphrodite reincarnated.

"I care a lot about your son's safety and wellness," Yashiro said as he dropped into a bow as well. "How is he doing? I haven't been able to go over to the hospital, they keep telling me that only family can be there, well Kyoko-chan gets special permission, I'm assuming," he smiled as Julie nodded.

"Yes, she's such a sweet girl. I'm glad that my son found her. I heard that after my husband came to punch _that man_ in the face that people had found out his identity. If that is true, thank you for keeping the news private. I don't think it's necessary now, nobody is willing to gi—"

Julie found herself caught off guard as she saw a man spot the two of them. She didn't know how to explain what she was doing there and looking far more unglamorous than she usually did. She didn't know who this man was but she had the feeling that he had some importance in the entertainment world. If only she was more interested in these younger directors.

"Yukihito-san," the man said as he approached Yashiro and Julie took a step back to watch the two of them.

"Ah, shingai-san," Yashiro said as he offered his hand. "How are you doing? Is there something that I can help with?"

"I wanted to talk about Ren," Seiji said and Yashiro waited patiently to hear whatever this man was going to tell him.

"Alright, I understand that your contract with hi-" Yashiro began, digging in his bag to pull out a notebook.

"I want to use him as the antagonist in the movie, switch up the roles a little bit. Do you know if he'd be interested?" he asked and Yashiro paused and looked at him confused.

"You have seen the damage to his face, correct?" he asked. He hated that those tabloids had come out before they had been able to do damage control from their side. He had wanted the public to treat Ren with empathy and support, not these ridiculous comments on how people were crying because he didn't match up to their flawed ideas of what is attractive and what isn't.

"Yes, but do you know any actors who are more talented or dedicated to the profession and who are that easy to work with. Ren always does his best no matter what, he works hard, he comes in early in the morning If he's available and he doesn't even mind helping the other actors get to learn their characters. I'm not going to let the best actor, at least for the past few decades, slip into the shadows because his face is wounded."

Julie smiled as tears came to her eyes, she looked over at the director who had worked with her son a number of times. She just needed to make Kuon see that people saw him as more than some attractive guy who got cast because of his looks, she needed to make him see that they saw his skill and his work ethic and wanted to cast him because of those things.

"Have you spoken to the president about using him?" Yashiro asked and Seiji sighed.

"He said that Ren wouldn't be returning," Julie's eyes widened as she heard that. Had her son even been given the chance to decide that? Seiji continued, "He said that Ren would make the film flop, but I think that he could make it really an amazing piece."

"If I could interrupt," Julie said as she took a step forward, "You're saying that you'd like to use Tsuruga Ren even with the damage to his appearance?" she asked, "Have you considered using any skin masks or even covering his face and applying makeup over a cover?"

"I'd like to see Ren before I can commit to any of those ideas," Seiji said before looking at the woman and Julie bit her bottom lip. Everyone in Japan seemed to know her husband but people tended to forget about her. Well, most of her work was in the US and although she had done some modelling shoots for Japanese magazines, people remembered dramas and movies more than advertisements.

"I'm Julienna Hizuri," Julie gave a short bow as Seiji's mouth dropped. "I am very interested in the future of Tsuruga Ren. I was amazed by his acting ability whilst my husband and I were watching Dark Moon. I'd offer my help as a makeup consultant if you need it to be able to cast Ren-san in your drama."

Seiji nodded, "You are just as beautiful as everyone talks about," he said before Julie smiled.

"I like to see great talent get the roles, from my experience I know that Ren-san has amazing acting abilities. I would think that you would want to talk with him directly concerning that offer." Julie looked at Yashiro who was nodding along with her. She hoped her acting skills were good enough to convince this director that she wasn't Ren's mother.

"Do you think that he'd take it?" Seiji asked, turning his attention back to Yashiro but Julie was too 'into' the scene to be thinking straight.

"Of course, he loves acting and said he would be willing to take any role even that of a voice -" she saw Seiji looking at her.

"Have you spoken to him?" he asked and Julie paled.

"Isn't it only right for…for…" she looked down and closed her eyes.

"You're his mother aren't you?" Seiji said as Julie paled. "There are whispers," he tried to reassure her. "Well, I won't force him to use the name Hizuri but I'm still going to try to offer this role to Ren in person," he said as Julie smiled to herself.

Her son was getting the chance to live his dreams, despite the cat being adorable, having this chance to act would benefit him far more.

 **End Chapter Seven**

 **AN2:** Thank you for reading this fic as well as to those who support it. Special shout out to **brennakai** and **paulagato** for their thoughtful reviews of the previous chapter.


	9. Chapter 8 - Remember that I love you

**AN:** I hope you enjoy this chapter since it was a lot of fun to write it.

 **Chapter Eight -** Remember that I love you

Kyoko hadn't wanted to leave the hospital, but she knew that she had a test coming up at school and she needed to have a strong performance on it. Usually she was able to concentrate on the material and handle her jobs, but this time it wasn't like that. Over the past few days, she had only wanted to concentrate on the fact that Ren was in the hospital and she hadn't known the extent of his wounds or even if he was going to pull through or not. Those weren't things that kept you focused on your work.

Although, now, she only had partially complete notes that she was attempting to study from. She was glad that Kuon was asleep and wasn't able to see the notes and how distracted she had been. She knew that she didn't need to get a perfect score to impress him, but Kuon had always been focused on his work … or maybe that was just Ren.

"In American history, what occurred between April 17th 1961 and April 19th 1961?" she whispered to herself as she looked at the man who was asleep in the bed. She hummed as she thought about what the answer could be. She _knew_ this one. "The missile crisis?" she asked herself, "or would it be -"

"Bay of Pigs Invasion," Kuon told her without opening his eyes. Kyoko blinked and nodded as she wrote the answer in. "That was a Cuban invasion that didn't have positive results. It was to do with missiles though," he gave her a thumbs up.

Kyoko paused as she looked at him and smiled, "I thought you were supposed to be asleep?" she asked as she kissed the top of his head.

"Okay, so the next date," she tried to tell herself, "December 20th 1989 to January 31st 1990" she tried to wait again. She didn't know why they had to study the American war dates, but it did make the education that she was receiving more well-rounded.

After she hadn't responded for a few minutes, Kuon smiled, "That's the Invasion of Panama."

"How did - is this because you're American?" she asked with a frown, "because that gives you an unfair advantage, Kuon. If these are things that everyone knows in Ameri-"

"They're not," he smiled. "I bet you didn't believe my dad when he told you that I was intelligent," he gave a sigh, "and here I thought you were interested in me because of my brain."

"I'm into you because of your heart, but yes, I know that you're intelligent," Kyoko smiled. "I doubt that you'd want to get into an IQ challenge with me though," she teased him as she let her fingers roam his gorgeous blond hair.

"Good for me. I know that you'd be able to win that," Kuon smiled as he opened his uncovered eye and smiled to her. "Did you need help with your homework? I can try to talk you through some of the answers if need be."

"You just concentrate on getting some rest," Kyoko told him. "You'll be going to the safe house soon, won't you?" she asked and Kuon nodded.

"Seems so. I wonder if the press will be able to find me when I'm there," his eye turned more serious and he looked like he was in pain.

"Whatever happens, I'll be right beside you," Kyoko attempted to assure him. "I don't care if they decide to spin this into something it's not. I care about you. I care about whether or not you're going to be alright. You promised me that you'd fight and you wouldn't give up."

"I intend to do that," Kuon said, "It'll just be a change."

"Then it's one that we'll have to adapt to together," Kyoko smiled as she kissed him softly. "Now, I might have to leave unless you can go back to sleep," she said as she smiled affectionately at him.

"How can I sleep knowing that you're worrying over your homework?" he asked her as he gave an adorable pout and Kyoko had to stop herself from laughing over how sweet he appeared.

It was at this point that there was even a larger distraction for Kuon. With Kyoko's help, he pushed himself to a seated position and smiled at his mother and then his manager. He hadn't had a chance to thank Yashiro for doing what was needed in such a short amount of time. Yashiro had saved his life, he really needed to show his gratitude for that.

"Hey," the manager said as Kuon looked at him and then saw Kyoko's grin. That was until both of them saw Seiji standing there.

"Hello?" he asked as Kyoko got up and gave a formal bow. Kuon sighed as he looked up, "This is about the contract, isn't it?" he asked as Kyoko turned to him and sighed. "I know that I broke it and it's going to take some time to get another actor. I think in this circumstance -"

"I want to offer you another role. It's not as glamorous as the lead role, but I hope you'll hear me out," Seiji said as Kuon looked at him confused.

"Okay. If it's a minor or background role then at least I'll be acting," he tried to convince himself. He knew with his new appearance he wasn't going to give Shingai's work the praise that he hoped it would receive and he wondered if this was done out of sympathy. Nobody wanted to watch a movie where the lead character had a gigantic burn down the side of his face and he doubted that makeup would really be able to hide it at this stage. There was also the possibility of getting an infection if makeup was applied on top.

"I want to give you the role of the antagonist," Seiji said as Kuon blinked. "I've seen pictures of what is hidden underneath those bandages and I think that in this piece, with a few rewrites, we could get it to work."

Kyoko looked at the director with her face lighting up with excitement. This would give Kuon a chance to follow his dreams again. She grabbed his hand and kissed it. The only thing that made her expression dim was that Kuon's was more hopeful and more eager.

"I think it's important that you see it in person," Kuon said as he attempted to give a more serious look. The director had seen _pictures_ but he wouldn't be certain in his decision without seeing what it really looked like and how a video would capture it more than any photograph.

"Kyoko," he said as Seiji smiled at how strong Kyoko had grown since the time when he had had her stand in for Ruriko to teach her a lesson. "Could you help me with this?" he asked as he gestured to the bandage.

Kyoko nodded. She leaned in so that nobody else could hear and whispered, "You tell me if it hurts or stings and I'll be more careful," she said as she squeezed his hand. "Remember that I love you," she said as she couldn't help but take into account the glee that was spreading over Yashiro's face. She very gently and slowly took the bandage off to reveal the wound.

She could see Director Shingai's eyes widen and saw the sad look on Yashiro's face whilst Julie was trying to take in their emotions. She didn't want for this chance to get ripped away from her son. Kyoko placed the bandages on the side table and sat behind Kuon, wrapping her arms around his waist and kissing his shoulder.

"It is bad," Seiji said, "but it's usable," he smiled as he examined it. Maybe he could do something such as wrap it and add some makeup and then he could keep the burn open for the majority of the shooting. "Do you think you'll be able to act like that?" he asked as Yashiro's eyes kept taking in the different folds and crisper parts of the very severe burn. _If_ there was a skin graft done, it would have to be from a donor, Kuon didn't have enough skin to really cover it effectively if he was to use a part of his own body.

"I think I can act, but the visuals of your movie," Kuon said nervously as Seiji laughed at that.

"We've done quite a number of projects together, haven't we, Ren?" he asked as Kuon looked to his mother and then to the director. "I thought you realized that I like skilled actors, I like working with the best of the best and you are the best. Your appearance is nice, especially for the modeling work that you've done in the past, but it's not what makes me want to cast you as an actor. There aren't many who have the same discipline and set of skills that you do. To work with the best means that something like that burn isn't going to bother me," Seiji said as Kuon blinked again.

"You know my real name, don't you?" he asked and Seiji shrugged.

"So what? You have famous parents and a stage name. Though, I do have to admit, it would be to my benefit to use your family name to get this film additional press coverage, that isn't as important as you being cast in this piece whether you did want to use Tsuruga Ren or your proper name." Seiji said as Kuon turned to Yashiro.

"Are you alright with working with me still?" he asked and Yashiro grinned.

"It would be an honor….Kuon," he said as Kuon nodded. Somehow his secret had become exposed in a way that he didn't want it to have been, but these people didn't seem to want to harm him. It was rare to find this much acceptance in others.

"I want to thank you, Yashiro-san," Kuon said weakly. "If it wasn't for you then I might not be - no I probably wouldn't be alive. If you hadn't found me they would have won and I would never have told Kyoko that I love her or been able to take any future acting roles. I sincerely thank you for not giving up on me."

Yashiro nodded. "I wouldn't give up on you, Kuon. I've got far too much left to tease you about, besides I'm very interested in the progression of your relationship with Kyoko."

Kyoko blushed at this before reaching her hand out to take Kuon's. "Well, I also want to thank you for saving him, Yashiro-san. I didn't know that I could be in love like this when the only love I'd experienced was an immature love. I know that Kuon cares about me in ways that _that other guy_ couldn't."

Yashiro nodded and smiled at the two of them. Kuon's attention now focused on Julie.

"Mom, what is it?" he asked her and Julie looked down.

"Do you know, Kuon, that you would have been offered this role much earlier if it wasn't for the kidnapper telling this director that you were giving up on acting and that you weren't interested in being a part of LME anymore. Did you know that that man got in the way of you and your dreams," she said as she grew angrier with the more she thought on it.

"I expected he'd be over-protective," Kuon said, "but please don't be too harsh on him. It's because of Boss that I have somewhere to stay and somewhere safe as well. I know that you don't agree with what he did, but I'll talk to him. I'll tell him that I'm ready to fight my own battles."

Julie looked down before nodding. "I only hope I can swallow my anger."

 **End of Chapter Eight**

 **AN2:** Thank you to everyone who reads and supports this fic. It means a lot to me. A special shout out to the reviewers of Chapter Seven: **brennakai, Guest,** and **PaulaGato**


	10. Chapter 9 - Batman's Two Face

**Important Author Note:** I actually have to give thanks to **brennakai** for part of this chapter. They wrote this idea for me down in their review and I liked it so much I _had_ to put it in this chapter. Thank you 😊

 **Chapter Nine -** Batman's Two Face

Kyoko held tight to Kuon's hand as they stood in the agency building. As Kuon wasn't able to move, Kyoko looked around and smiled as she stared at the spot in which she had first met him as Ren. She couldn't believe that it had happened so long ago but even though it was a moment with a lot of animosity, it was a precious moment to her.

"Do you remember that you were right here when you said that I could beat that guy easily just by singing a little song?" Kyoko pointed as Kuon turned to look at it for a moment and nodded. "I think I cursed you a lot after that meeting. I'm glad that we got a second chance," she said as she kissed his cheek.

She could see people looking at him and some people try to divert their eyes. Even with a bandage over his face, they had seen what was underneath it. No wonder he looked so pale.

"You think it's as disgusting under there as it looked in the picture?" one of the girls, a new singer, giggled and Kyoko saw Kuon withdraw in on himself. She glared at the girl but didn't say anything.

"I'm glad that there are people who can _now_ represent Japan," her companion said as Kyoko felt Kuon hold her hand tighter. Couldn't they see that he was suffering.

"Come on," Kyoko whispered as she lifted his hand and kissed the back of it affectionately. "You wanted to come and talk to the president face to face. I'm sure that he wants the same thing." She saw Kuon nod and then froze as Sawara-san approached him. Kyoko quickly dropped into a bow and seeing her do that, Kuon followed suit.

"Ah, Ren. Welcome back," the department head smiled as he put a hand on Kuon's shoulder. "We were all worried about you. Japanese TV should give more details about what's going on. Well I'm glad to see that you're still alive and standing upright," he said as Kyoko looked at Kuon and saw the Tsuruga-san smile on his face. At least that was a start.

"Thank you, I hope that I haven't left too much of an absence," he smiled charismatically and Kyoko had to admire his strength.

"Kyoko-san," Sawara said, "There's something that I'd like to talk privately with you about."

Kyoko paused and turned to her boyfriend, "Could it be on another day?" she asked, "I'm really here to support Ren. I don't want to leave hi-"

"It's okay, we still have some time before we're due to meet the president," Kuon smiled to her and Kyoko felt uneasy when she saw that but she knew for appearance sake she had to talk to Sawara-san. She kissed his good cheek and then walked off as Kuon went to sit down knowing that everyone was looking at him as if he were a pygmy hippo.

As he sat there looking forwards into whatever dark hole he had in his mind, he was caught by a flash of shocking neon pink from two directions. He looked up and found himself speechless as he saw the two other Love Me members standing there. "Good morning," he tried to smile at them and Kanae was the first person to point a finger at him.

"We're on to you," she told him as Kuon blinked not sure what she was talking about. "You've started to date Kyoko, haven't you?"

"It's kind of a shame because romance is a waste of time," Chiori commented as Kuon looked at them with a weak smile, he nodded. "Ugh, can you just - it's not that you're not a good person but you're so false."

"I'm sorry about that," Kuon said as he looked forwards. "As for whether I've started to date Kyoko, then yes I have. I think she's equally as happy about that as I am," he told them. He looked at his hands, he actually really hoped that sentiment was true and she wasn't just being with him out of pity.

"It doesn't matter that you're rich," Kanae said as Kuon looked at her confused, "Kyoko isn't the type of girl who-"

"Kyoko isn't the type of girl who can be bought by just fancy bouquets filled with jewels," Chiori said as Kanae looked at her in surprise. That wasn't where she thought that sentence was going to lead but it was true all the same. "Men who try to buy women are the worst."

"Hey," Kuon said as he looked at the two of them. "I have never tried to buy a woman in my life. I was as surprised as you seem that she told me that she loves me and you know what, I love her too. I'm not going to treat her like an object."

"So, you're saying that if Kyoko wanted to do international acting you would stay at home with any offspring that you force her to have?" Kanae asked and Kuon looked at her.

"Kotonami-san, I respect and understand your friendship with Kyoko. You are an important person to her, probably more important that I am, but I would never force her into or out of anything that wasn't her choice." Kuon stood up, his eyes catching sight of the president talking to Kyoko within ear shot. However, he needed to make the two pink-cladded girls understand this. "I have _always_ been supportive of Kyoko's dreams. I want to see her as the actress to represent Japan as much as she does. _If_ we ever had children, which is between me and Kyoko only, I would of course take care of them if she was overseas and even if she wasn't, bringing up one's child should be a shared thing. My parents both worked and though there were some hard times, I always knew that the two of them loved me. I want to go out to work -"

"Which is going to be hard with your appearance, Ren" Lory said as Chiori looked down remembering her own scar. It was so minute compared to the man's in front of her but it was as if the president was making a dig against her and without her notebook it was harder to keep control.

"Why should the way he looks make any difference?" Chiori said bluntly. "Do you think that the fact that I have a scar makes any difference? I rely on talent to get my roles despite how much I dislike the comedic ones and with all due respect, I think that Tsuruga Ren has been talked about in so many magazines and interviews that it's hard to avoid the knowledge of his talent. Real stars have the love in their hearts that Kyoko does, they have the ability to motivate people, or are you saying that if Kyoko had that burn that she wouldn't be able to act?"

Lory paused as he noticed Kuon's shocked look. This girl was just trying to warn him about treating Kyoko badly and now she was standing up for him. Maybe there were more people around him who supported him.

Kyoko reached out for his hand, grinning to her friend's. "Come on," she said as she tried to pull him out. "Sorry, we've got a meeting with the president. Will you be here when it's over, Moko-chan?" she asked with her eyes filling with light.

Kanae sighed before nodding. "Sure, maybe we could all do something together," she said as she saw Kyoko's smile as Kuon wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

That guy _better not_ hurt Kyoko.

…..

…..

Lory sighed as he sat down opposite the couple. He kept looking at the bandages on Kuon's face. He wanted to see what the burn looked like in person but he didn't know the most tactful way of saying it. He looked down before humming, "Kuon, Ren, which one do you -"

"I'm not sure," Kuon said as he looked up, "I suppose if it's personal Kuon and it's business Ren. I mean, my dad had a stage name and everyone knew his real name. Maybe that's what I want?" he asked and Lory hummed again with a frown. This was a mix of both.

"Okay, Kuon," Lory said, "I need to apologize. Your injuries and what happened, those things are my fault. You came to me, which wasn't an ordinary occurrence, and you told me that you felt that you were being targeted and I didn't sort it out soon enough. If it wasn't for my telling Yashiro-san about what you had told me then he might not have been concerned enough to go up to the apartment."

"So, you think that you get credit for that?" Kyoko asked, she was still annoyed with what the president had told Director Shinkai about Kuon not being an actor any longer. "You didn't act but if you had put Kuon under protection and found the guys before they did this to him."

"Kyoko, it's alright. Weren't you the one to tell me that everything in life was connected and that we can only have some experiences because of others happening?" Kuon asked before looking down. "Acting is the second most important thing to me, Boss."

"The second?" Lory asked surprised and Kuon took Kyoko's hand. "I see," he grinned before seeing Kyoko's serious expression.

"I know that you want to take care of Kuon, president" she said before looking down, "but I want the same thing. I don't think that Kuon hiding away in the shadows is going to do anything and it will definitely have a negative effect on Ren's career. I think that we should support him and if he falls, we help him get back on his feet. I am willing to do that. I am head cheerleader of the Ren Tsuruga slash Kuon Hizuri recovery team."

"Well then," Lory said, "I do have to ask one thing before I sign off on it," he said before his expression turned sadder. "Kuon," he said and Kuon nodded, understanding where this was coming from. He slowly unwrapped his face and looked towards Lory who was looking more mournful about how the burns had taken over half of his face.

"You look like the character that actor played," he said before gesturing, "You know that American actor in the superhero -"

"You mean Batman's Two Face, everyone has said the same thing to me," Kuon said, "However he had bones sticking out of his face, at least it isn't that bad," he said before closing his eyes. "I know how I look. I'm still struggling to accept it, but after seeing that movie I know that Harvey Dent only became Two Face after the loss of the woman he continued to love. I can understand that. When I first saw myself, I was only supported by strings but Kyoko helped build a ladder to support my body. Without her, I don't know who I'd be."

Kyoko smiled at him and Lory saw how the burn didn't change how much she cared for him. Of course, it didn't, Kyoko was definitely not the kind of girl who placed importance on the outside of a person. It was their heart that mattered to them and the idea that they wouldn't abandon her.

"Well, I'll let you do this but I'm going to be watching how you are psychologically," Lory said. "If I find that acting in this role is too challenging for you then I'm going to force you to take some much deserved time off. If I ask you to do that, I'm going to give you one chance each month to prove to me that you can enter the acting arena."

"Don't worry," Kuon said boldly, "I've got it. I won't let it break me as long as…" he looked across at Kyoko.

"Like a burnt face could stop me from loving you, Corn" Kyoko smiled at him. She was beyond proud of his efforts and thankful for the chance he now had. She knew that he could prove the world that despite the outside was charred, his soul and his passion made him beautiful outside and in.

 **End Chapter Nine**

 **AN2:** Thank you so much to the people who read and support this story. Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Eight: **brennakai** and **ktoll9**. Another special thanks to **brennakai** for her idea of having Kanae and Chiori confront Kuon 😊 If you have an idea that you don't mind me using, feel free to suggest it. Most of the time I will probably stick with my ideas but if there is a suggestion you want to make feel free to share and it _might_ get included. Thank you to everyone once again.


	11. Chapter 10 - a tough name like Cain

**AN:** I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I'm in the middle of a pretty long work weekend so it'd surprise me if there were a lot of fic updates before Wednesday 😊 I hope you're still enjoying them though.

 **Chapter Ten - A tough name like Cain**

Kyoko smiled at Kanae as the two of them sat at the ice cream parlor where they had convinced Kuon to come to as well. Unfortunately, Chiori wasn't able to come because of another job but it was nice having two of her most important people – if not her _most_ important – people beside her. Kyoko looked away from Kanae for just a moment to look at the ice cream bar where Kuon was getting the food for them.

"So, he's your boyfriend now?" Kanae asked with a sigh, "I hope he does okay at it, Mo.." she sighed and Kyoko smiled as she looked at her best friend.

"Moko-chan," she said before closing her eyes with a smile, "You can trust me when I say that I used to think that being in love was one of the worst feelings because it opens you up to the possibility of heart ache. I trust Ren though. I trust that he is going to try his best so that the two of us can be happy together. It's strange but these feelings for him are different than the ones for that pathetic other person."

"Maybe it's because this time it's actually being returned," Kanae told her. "That guy is on a short leash with me though. If he ever hurts you, tell me, and we can do one of those curses on him together or take down his acting career."

Kyoko looked down as she thought about how she had first met Corn in the woods in Kyoto. She shook her head. She knew that she needed to guard her heart but she couldn't imagine the fairy prince hurting her. "We'll be okay, but thank you, Moko-chan" she smiled. "It's nice to know that you love me enough to care like that."

Kanae rolled her eyes, "The line is pretty long today. I can't believe a guy like that wouldn't use his celebrity status to just get whatever he wants."

"Ren isn't like that," Kyoko smiled, "He's too respectful. Of course, that doesn't mean that he hasn't been trapped by a mob of fans. I've seen it happen before. I think I'm going to check on hi—" Kyoko said as she stood up but was immediately approached by a notorious tabloid writer.

"You're Mogami Kyoko, aren't you?" he asked and Kyoko blinked.

"Yes, did you want to talk about one of my acting roles," she said before dropping into a bow. She had a sinking feeling that this guy didn't want to talk about her. Maybe he overheard her talking about Ren. Yes, he probably did and he wanted some dirt on him. "If you want to tal-"

"You're Tsuruga Ren's girlfriend, aren't you?" the writer asked and Kyoko tried to give a neutral expression.

"Yes. However, I am not going to speak on behalf of my boyfriend," she said trying to think of how to end this in the quickest way. She didn't want the reporter to comment on Kuon's face or make him feel uncomfortable and even more alienated from the public.

"That's okay because I'd much rather talk about you," he said and Kyoko looked down. "So, you agreed to go out of him because of pity?"

Kyoko frowned, "No. I agreed to go out of him because I love him. That's something that you need to get right. Ren doesn't need pity to have people care about him. He has many people who know who he is inside his heart. If that's the type of story that you want to run then I pity _you_."

"So, you're attracted to his face?" the reporter asked and Kyoko looked away.

"Yes. He's been named the most attractive man in Japan _several_ times. You could find that the majority of people say that," Kyoko said. "I'm not interested in furthering your career by insulting the man I love. If you don't understand that, then again I feel sorry for you."

"Is his burn disgusting?" the reporter asked and Kyoko tried to keep her anger and impulsiveness in check. It would have been better not to feed this leech.

"No." Kyoko said before looking at Kanae, maybe they should move tables but then she didn't want Kuon to not be able to find them and think that they ran away from him. "I am not going to make any further comments," she said before sitting down again.

"Do you love him?" the reporter cooed and Kyoko looked away.

"Do you hear an annoying gnat, Moko-chan?" she asked and Kanae looked away.

"You shouldn't have replied to them in the first place," Kanae said. "Do you think we should get security to pull him away."

"It would be funny to witness that," Kyoko said as the man behind her continued to ask questions despite the fact that he was getting ignored. She heard a sound behind her and then turned to where Kuon was returning with more freebies than they had asked for.

"Sorry about the wait," he said as he sighed. "It's difficult being famous and going to a place like this. All of the girls wanted me to sign something or kiss them or take a photo with them. I can't believe I got to escape when I did."

"Did you take photos with them?" Kyoko asked as she reached out for his hand.

"No, but I promised when I felt better that I would. I managed to explain that I didn't want to be on camera with my face like this," he looked at the reporter and stood. He felt a fire burn behind him and used the ultimate Tsuruga-san smile. "Were you bothering these two ladies to get to me?" he asked him as he slowly approached. "Are you thinking of asking me about the people who attacked me or did you just want to get an in-person view of my face?" he asked as the man started to back off, scared of the dark glow from his eyes. "It's very interesting because if I get your name, I will tell the president of LME to warn all of the stars that the agency represents to avoid you."

The reporter took awkward inhales before shaking his head, "No. We're all done," he said before walking off and Ren glared after him.

Kyoko took his hand and pulled him back to the table. "Ren, please don't let that guy ruin your day?" she asked. "Plus, I got you to agree to eat ice cream. That is a win for me."

"I wish they had let me pay," he sighed and let his hand go through his brown strands of hair. He smiled to Kyoko as she took her sundae whilst Kuon and Kanae had chosen small scoops.

"This is too big to eat by myself," Kyoko winked to her boyfriend as Kanae sighed.

"I suggested that you order just a scoop. I'm scared of all those calories being in _my_ body," the long-haired brunette said, although she had to admit that it looked delicious.

Kuon smiled before taking a spoon and looked at Kyoko, "Believe me when I say that this is a sacrifice I'd only make for you, princess," he said as he took some of her ice cream to his own bowl along with some hot fudge. Kyoko smiled at him, her prince.

…..

…..

Kuon was reading over the script in the safe house that Lory had prepared. The villains lines were written much better than the protagonist's and there was a lot of space to where he could really develop the character and make him his own. The doctor had advised him to uncover his face one hour a day until the nerve damage couldn't be felt as strongly and he didn't want to go out without the bandages…yet.

That was how he had come to lying on the couch and reading.

As Kuon closed his eyes, he felt something brush against his hand and paused. Had he accidentally pushed something onto the floor? Before he could open his eyes, he heard one voice.

"Mrow?"

Kuon opened his eyes and looked at the little kitten who had come to join him. He had heard from the president that there was a kitten but this was the first time he had seen him. He allowed his finger to run over the cat's head and smiled as the cat allowed his head to curl into the hand.

"Hey, I guess you're my roommate," he smiled down at the cat and let him sniff his hand. "Shall we think about what to call you?" he asked as he let his hand run through the cat's fur. "I don't think Eric," he shook his head. "How about a tough name like Cain?" he said.

The cat started purring and Kuon brought him up to his chest, "Okay, it's Cain." He looked the small cat in the eyes and smiled as the cat didn't seem to run from him. "So, I guess you're mine. That's what I've been told anyway," he smiled. "It'll be nice to have someone to talk to," he told him. Kuon wasn't aware that Kuu was watching from the doorway.

"Mrow-oww" Cain smiled happily as he stood proudly atop Kuon's chest.

"Okay, how about we take a picture of the two of us?" Kuon asked as he scratched the cat behind the ear. He picked up his phone and managed to take a picture of the cat falling asleep on his chest with their faces turned towards the camera. Kuon sighed as he saw it before petting the cat.

Despite how he would often try to create messages to get the best response from Kyoko, that wasn't what he cared about right now. He just wanted to connect with her. Perhaps the photo would be something she would like to see.

He sent it to her.

…..

…

Kyoko had been able to help with the restaurant closing. She didn't know whether to tell Okami-san or Taishou about the fact that she now had a boyfriend. She didn't know whether she should talk to them about Ren or not. Maybe if he was to come over _and_ pass the fish test it would help.

As she was bringing in the last round of dirty dishes, she heard the sound of her phone buzzing and her eyes widened. She must have dropped it when she was changing her apron. What if there had been an important call from the agency? Would she get scolded for keeping her phone with her? She made her way to grab her phone only to find one of the two remaining customers pick it up.

"Is this Kyoko's?" one of the guys asked as he looked at it and Kyoko smiled weakly.

"Yes, it is. I'm sorry for the trouble. Thank you for picking it up for me," she bowed to them politely and the other guy laughed.

"Anything for you, Kyoko? What is it a message from your boyfriend?" he teased her but the first guy dropped it and it showed the picture of Ren Tsuruga. "Wow…is that…."

"Yes," Kyoko said with her cheeks turning hot and red, "That's my boyfriend."

Okami-san looked at her and Kyoko sighed. "He got a cat," she said as she showed Okami whose eyes were wide however then tears filled them.

"That poor man," she said and Kyoko nodded.

"He's really strong. He's taking it incredibly well," Kyoko attempted to explain as Okami-san turned to the two men.

"Can you keep this information private?" she asked as they nodded.

It was at this point that Taisho made his way over to Kyoko and set his knife in front of her. "Now we talk," he said as he gestured to both Kyoko and his wife. Okami-san nodded.

"It will be okay, Kyoko" she tried to reassure the young woman.

 **End Chapter 10**

 **AN2:** Thank you so much to all the readers and supporters of this fic. I get really depressed during hot weather (my area in California went to 113 today) so it means a lot when I get to read reviewers react excitedly for my work. I even go back to them when I feel depressed later on to cheer myself up so thank you.

Special shoutout to reviewers of Chapter Nine: **brennakai, EmmaLasagna, ktoll9, PaulaGaTo**

There was an idea with ice cream and the papparazi, but I already had ice cream and tabloid in my plans so great minds think alike 😉


	12. Chapter 11 - The Professional Actors

**AN:** Hope you enjoy 😊. I want to apologize about the last chapter and tell you it has been replaced with the Chapter 10 of this fic and not Chapter 35 of "Secrets" sorry that happened :/

 **Chapter Eleven -** the professional actors.

After the guests had all gone, Kyoko followed Taisho to a private room with Okami-san following the two of them. Taisho gestured for Kyoko to sit down at the table in front of him as Okami sat between the two of them. "Tsuruga Ren," Taisho nodded. "You trust him?"

Kyoko smiled, "Yes. I've trusted him since I first really got to know him at the Dark Moon sets. Ren is a very nice man who always tries to get people to put forth their best effort. He works hard and is a very talented man and he has cared for me for a while."

"That man did not eat fish properly," Taisho said as Kyoko smiled weakly.

"I know, he's too used to playing the actor because that's who the media wants to make him, but I know the proper him. If you got to know Kuon then you'd like hi-" Kyoko paled. She had _promised_ Kuon that she wouldn't let anybody know his real name and it had just slipped so easily from her lips. She closed her eyes before dropping down into a low seated bow. "Please do not reveal that name to anyone," she tried to ask him humbly.

Okami blinked hard, "His name isn't Ren Tsuruga?" she saw Taisho's eyes glow with the fire behind him. "Darling, I'm sure that most actors in the industry have a stage name. I know that Kyoko is never referred to with her last name."

Kyoko paled, "His name is Kuon Hizuri," she said weakly as both Taisho and Okami looked at her in shock. They had both been fans of Kuu Hizuri's work in the past. "He changed his name so that he could start an acting career without having to rely on his family name. He wanted to see where hard work and his own talents and abilities would take him. He never meant to hurt anyone. He wanted to prove that he is skilled and not just from a famous family," Kyoko looked hesitantly at Taisho and saw him get up.

"I approve of that," he nodded as Okami smiled.

"Does he keep in contact with his family? It must be difficult to have lived so far away from them for so long," she wondered and Kyoko closed her eyes.

"No. He doesn't – didn't. When the news reports told of the damage done to his body and that he was in the hospital, the Hizuri family came over here where they are staying with him. He wanted to get through life working hard and acting with his own talent so he had to make some sacrifices." She looked down nervously and Okami gazed up at her husband.

"Darling," she smiled at him, "We can keep this information private, right?"

"Yes. It's not concerning me and so it will be kept private," he nodded before looking at Kyoko seriously. "You need to protect your head."

Kyoko nodded, "I will. I won't let love dupe me a second time," she said before looking down and then concentrated on the table. "I am not going to let him take away my precious dreams, but at no point has he shown any desire to. He is a supportive person…who has a problem with food."

"You will invite him to do the fish test again?" Taisho asked and Kyoko nodded. She knew it would be hard to convince Kuon to eat fish but maybe he'd do it for her. He just had to think of how his father would eat the fish, right? Of course, the idea of Kuu-sama eating only one fish was a little bit frightening for other reasons.

"I will," Kyoko smiled.

"He will not sleep here," Taisho said and Kyoko nodded.

"Understood," she smiled at him before standing up and placing her hands in front of her, she bowed deeply. "I want to humbly ask you to support me in my choice to date him" she said as she blushed and Okami-san smiled.

"Of course, you have our blessing, just take care of yourself," she said and Kyoko could see the joy which arose in just acting in this parental role for her. It really showed how much this couple cared for her.

…..

…..

Kuon grinned down as he looked at his text messages. Director Shinkai had asked all of the main actors to meet him as they went over the script in a table read to see if any new improvements would have to be made. It had only been a week since his release from the hospital so Kuon was surprised they had managed to find people for all the spots so quickly.

He had been nervous and so had come earlier and told Yashiro he would phone him if the manager was needed but he needed to tackle this by himself. As he sat in the room where they were scheduled to meet, he texted Kyoko on the phone to try to make dinner arrangements for that night. He knew she didn't like anything too extravagant, but there was a restaurant next to the water with a beautiful view.

Hopefully she would enjoy that.

Kuon looked up as he saw the door open and his eyes widened in surprise as he saw someone very familiar enter. He stood up not sure how to interact with the man who had just appeared. Was he the person who had taken over the starring role? "Nice to meet you," Ren smiled, "Tsuruga Ren," he said as he gave a charismatic smile and offered a hand out to the guy who was studying him.

"Murasame Taira," the other actor smiled weakly. He looked at Ren weakly as he shook his hand and still attempted to study him. "I know you're famous and stuff, but have we…met before?"

"Don't you think you'd remember if we had?" Ren attempted to ask cryptically so as not to outright lie. This was going to be a lot more difficult than he thought.

"Hmm," Taira said as he looked down and worked on figuring it out. "Did you appear on a runway with a woman, I can -"

"Do you usually ask this many questions when meeting someone?" Ren gave one of his 'Tsuruga-san' smiles to the actor as he tried hard to steer his mind away from Tragic Marker. This was a huge coincidence and with this scar compared to BJ's, Kuon wasn't sure if he could ever hide the fact that they had worked closely together before.

"Sorry, I guess I'm nervous because I took your spot and because of an accident as well," Taira said as he looked down. Maybe his awkwardness was giving him these feelings of anxiety. After all everybody knew that Ren Tsuruga was a master at his craft. They knew how talented he was and how much he liked playing interesting roles. He was most likely looking forward to playing the protagonist and now he was being an antagonist.

Maybe it was the pressure in having to fill such a spot that was leading Taira to think back on his last project and how he had had to train himself as an actor and how Cain Heel had pushed him to his limits. Not every actor playing an antagonist was that jerk. Not every antagonist that he was going to have to fight would be that crazed Cain Heel playing his BJ. This was a Japanese actor, _the_ actor who was said to represent Japan at the forefront and he had been injured.

Yes, that was it.

"Figure something out?" Ren asked as he continued to look down at his phone.

"Are you texting with somebody?" Taira asked and Ren nodded.

"My girlfriend, she's nervous because this is going to be my first role with my burn exposed to camera," Kuon looked down before smiling as he sent another text.

 _I just met the protagonist for the movie. Do you remember Murasame Taira from Tragic Marker?_

Kuon smiled as he saw a laughing face from Kyoko. Maybe he had had a little too fun being Cain Heel around this actor. He wondered what would happen when he found out and if he ever would. Well, once the burn was revealed he might have a clearer image of what was going on in his mind. Kuon turned his phone off after telling Kyoko that he loves her and gestured to the bandage. "Do you mind if I take this off?" he asked Taira.

Taira shook his head, "I've seen worse," he said and Kuon nodded as he took the bandage off and Taira's eyes widened as he remembered how BJ had looked when he had tried to kill him by throwing him off a ledge. "Sorry…uh…did you…have we met?"

"I thought you had just asked me that," Ren sighed he looked up. " _If_ we have met then why wouldn't I have said anything?"

"Sometimes actors have strange contracts," Taira shrugged before figuring it out. "You're that son of a -" he yelled as he pointed at Ren. His eyes widened in disbelief and he looked a little haunted as he just stared at the man before him.

"A role," Ren said, "sometimes one has to adapt to many different roles."

" _You_ screwed with me for weeks?" Taira said exhausted before laughing. "Okay, I get it, don't tell anyone. I'm in that movie too, I wouldn't want all that work to be for nothing. This time though if you try to kill me, I get to take it all to the press."

"Well then I shouldn't try to kill you, should I?" Ren said very casually before smiling softly, "First of all thank you for your cooperation and second, I do truly apologize if I did any damage to either you or your career. I do need for us to work together on this project though, it is my only entry into the acting world."

"You do know that your face isn't that bad," Taira said with a sigh, "Okay, so half of it is pretty messed up but have they thought of a way to cover it up. I mean, once it heals and doesn't have a chance of getting infected then look into makeup," he looked away. "A guy in the gang got kinda messed up and he managed to look alright in the end," he said as Ren laughed.

"I thought that once you found out who I was you'd -" Ren started but found Taira to hold up a finger.

"As I said, don't try to act like some wanna-be teenager and don't throw me off the roof and we never have to talk about the past again. You've challenged me as an actor and made me improve so just be happy with that." Taira said before looking up at the actress who would be acting as a damsel in distress in the movie.

"He's too scary!" she screamed as she pointed to Ren and looked up at Shinkai, "Switch him out! He's too scary."

Shinkai yawned, "What's your name again?" he asked her as the actress paused and saw the director walk over to the two male stars. "I see you've met one another," he said before looking at Taira. "He came highly recommended to me. I hope to see some great acting between the two of you," he winked before the actress went up to Itsumi Momose who was also in the movie.

"Don't you think he's ugly?" she whispered loudly and Itsumi blinked.

"Umm…no, no I don't think that. I think that you should always try to treat people kindly because of what is inside of them," she looked at Ren and smiled. "Though I will try to beat him with my skills this time around."

"It's nice to see you again, Momose-san," he bowed and Itsumi smiled.

"I'm glad that you're okay," she nodded as she put her hand up to his shoulder, "We – I mean the Dark Moon family were all worried about you. I'm glad that you're still acting. It would have been horrible for me not to have the chance to be the better actor here," she challenged him and Kuon smiled but still heard the actress talking about him. "She's new," Itsumi said awkwardly.

Shinkai looked at the girl and walked over to her, "You're going to have to touch Ren during this movie. Now, I've heard that _not_ touching him is a problem for many young actresses but do you feel that you'll be able to interact in a scene together?"

The actress shook her head, tears in her eyes and so Shinkai sighed.

"Then you're fired," he said harshly before walking away from her and to the professional actors.

 **End of Chapter 11**

 **AN2:** Thank you to everyone who supports and reads this fic, thank you. Special shout out to reviewers of Chapter 10: **brennakai, Michiyo, PaulaGaTo**


	13. Chapter 12 - So Many Good Intentions

**AN:** I hope that you enjoy this

 **Chapter Twelve -** So Many Good Intentions

Kyoko nervously stood outside of the area where the actors were meeting to do an initial table read just of the director and of the actors. Kyoko wasn't sure if this was normal since she had never done such a thing, but the director had wanted a meeting between them to talk about the drama. She also didn't know whether it was overkill coming here to see how Kuon was doing, but before she had properly reasoned it to herself she was here with a bento in her hands.

She had tried to tell Okami-san that Ren didn't like to eat food (she had said that when Taisho couldn't hear) but Okami had told her that she had extra and that Kyoko could give it to him. It seemed that the two of them were trying in their own ways to support the relationship. Also, Shotaro had enjoyed the leftovers from the restaurant, maybe she could persuade Kuon to eat some. It was extremely delicious.

As she saw him, she smiled and came up to him as he raised an eyebrow and smiled at him.

"So, you did come," Kuon smiled to her and Kyoko nodded before bowing to Momose as she saw her come out. "Hello, it's been a long time," she said as Momose grinned and looked at the younger actress.

"Kyoko-chan, it _has_ been a long time, it's nice to see you again," she said before looking at Ren who was smiling and giggled. "I knew that the two of you would make a great couple," she said as Kyoko's cheeks turned red and Ren smiled with his eyes closed and nodded.

"Thank you," he said to her as Kyoko tried to hide how red her cheeks were.

Kyoko smiled before she saw Taira staring at the two of them with his eyes wide. She blinked with a smile, hopefully he didn't recognize her. Nobody ever recognized her out of costume anyway. She grinned up at Kuon as she showed him the bento. "I know that you usually don't like to eat, but the couple that I live with insisted that I bring you something. We could eat it together if you'd like," she said and Kuon smiled.

"Sure, sounds good and there's a picnic bench in a secluded area that might be fun to sit at," he said. Kyoko grinned as she noticed how he was trying to bring out his courage and confidence. However as the two of them stood together, Kyoko could see how Kuon's eyes kept drifting towards a young woman who was pacing back and forth. He hummed and Kyoko tilted her head.

"Could you hold on for just a moment," he asked her, kissing Kyoko on the top of the head as he did so. The girl nodded and watched as her boyfriend walked towards the girl that was pacing and was now crouching down and trying not to hyperventilate.

"Hi there," Ren smiled at the girl who had insulted him earlier. "I'm really sorry for what happened earlier," he told her. "If you talk to the director honestly and show that you're willing to make changes, I'll try to support you in getting your job back," he said as she looked at him and glared. "I don't blame you for what you said about what's under here," he pointed to the mask over his face. "Most people don't like it, but if we work together I know we can get through those scenes."

"If you quit, I'll come back," the girl said dramatically and Kuon shook his head.

"That's not going to happen. Trust me, in this career, if you're going through a hard time you can't just say no and think that your acting career is going to be alright. I promise that I'm not going to hold anything against you when we do the scenes together. The director is -"

The girl stood up as Ren's eyes studied her with such patience and understanding. "You're a disgusting monster," she said to him. "You're a freak and _you_ shouldn't be acting in this drama. _I_ should. I don't look ugly and creepy and I have better acting skills."

Ren rolled his eyes and sighed, "Do you really want to be an actress because it takes guts above everything else and touching a burn shouldn't be something that takes too much guts. We can do those scenes slowly, the director probably had a reason for finalizing the casting choice, talk to him and try to change your -"

"Don't talk to me!" the actress yelled at him, "I don't want some ugly freaky monster trying to tell me that he's better than me. I'm human," the girl said before both Ren and the actress felt a hate filled energy approaching them.

"Excuse me," Kyoko said with her version of a Tsuruga-san smile on her face but her eyes had flashes of anger in them. "I don't mean to interrupt the conversation, but what did my boyfriend do wrong?" she asked as she slipped her hand into Ren's as he stood up.

"He looks disgusting," the girl said and Kyoko shook her head.

"Well you are just showing your stupidity and how you don't know anything about popular culture. Ren Tsuruga has been named on multiple times as one of the most gorgeous men in Japan. I don't think a burn is going to change that. I'm very lucky that I get to be with him." Kyoko said as Kuon looked at her surprised. "So, I ask you again, what did he do wrong to you?"

"He's stopping me from acting," the actress pouted and Kyoko shook her head.

"Ren would never do that to somebody unless it would cause harm to another and then it wouldn't only be Ren. When I first started in show business, Ren was nice to another actress who seemed to be a demanding diva, thankfully she changed but it proved that Ren is a nice guy. So, don't act as if you know him." Kyoko said as she tried to control her anger. She didn't want someone like this to tear down Kuon.

"I don't want to touch him," the actress tried to explain as Kyoko laughed bitterly.

"With the way that _you_ are acting towards him, I don't want you to touch him either. I heard what he said to you, he was trying to help you and give you a chance to do what you love. He was trying to help him whilst you insulted him because _that'_ s who Ren is. Ren is a person who will do his best to help others and try to find their way to happiness. I'm glad that the director got rid of you because you should either clean up your attitude or understand that you will _never_ make it as an actress," she said before Ren nodded.

"You didn't need to do this," he told Kyoko before she looked down. He knew that she had let her anger get the best of her and she wasn't trying to show that she had more power than him. It was only the view most people had of society that a guy shouldn't allow himself to be protected by his girlfriend. She had had so many good intentions, "but thank you," he kissed her again before hearing Shinkai behind them.

"Kyoko!" he called out, "It's good to see you. Can I talk to you in private?" he asked and Kuon smiled as he looked at his girlfriend.

"Talk to him, I'll wait out here for you and feel free to say no," he told her as Kyoko looked at him curiously before nodding and following the director.

…..

…..

As Kuon sat at the safe house with the script in his lap and a cup of black coffee on the table in front of him, he saw Cain come up to him and start nuzzling his hand with his head. Kuon smiled at the cat and smiled as he heard the small kitten purring. "You are going to be a welcome distraction," Kuon said as he put a piece of paper in the script and then picked the kitten up in his arms.

Kuon stood up and walked around the room whilst making sure to take care of the small kitten. "You know, you might be stopping me from being an actor, but you can't help it can you?" he asked the cat as he sat down on a chair where they could both look out at the world around them. "Do you see that?" he pointed out a bird to the kitten.

Cain meowed loudly and tried to reach out to touch the bird despite it being on the other side of the glass.

"Are you thinking that the bird would be nice to chase, Cain?" he asked as he laughed. Was it silly to be talking to the kitten as if they were a person? He had always been that way with animals especially during his childhood. He still remembered his conversations with Brian when Rick had told him that he had to eat a chicken to stop being a chicken. In fact, that might be why he found it so much easier to talk to a talking rooster instead of a person. The president knew that about him despite how it could get twisted by the media.

Kyoko knew that about him too. She knew that he liked to look at birds and that he would willingly sit underwater with fish swimming around him. Maybe it was because he could understand animals more than people. That was what came from being bullied at a young age, you tended to internalize your feelings and feel nervous around other people.

As he sat there with Cain, Kuon heard the door open and someone tap on it. He looked around to see his mother standing there nervously. "Hi," he said weakly, "Care to join us?" he asked as Cain meowed and rubbed his cheek against Kuon's chest.

"Is that alright?" Julie asked as she came and sat down on the sofa and looked out the window with her son. She looked him over and smiled weakly as Kuon realized that he had sat on the seat where she was opposite the mask on his face. He tried to turn. He didn't want to upset her.

"How are you?" Kuon asked softly as he set Cain on his lap. "Mom?"

"I'm sorry that you weren't kept safe," Julie said sadly. She placed a hand on her son's shoulder and Kuon shook his head.

"It is what it is. I'm doing okay, I mean I still have nightmares about what happened, but you just have to keep going," he said as Julie looked him over. Compared to how he was after Rick's death, the change was shocking even. She took him in and smiled softly. He had grown up and matured so much, he was so different from the fifteen-year-old.

"Kuon," Julie said as she looked at him and Kuon nodded, "Do you think that I could spend some time with you? I'd like to get to know more about you."

Kuon nodded as he looked at her, "Sure, that would be nice," he nodded and Julie looked down, "but I feel as if you know me. There's still a lot of me that's the same from when I lived with you and dad as a teenager."

"Maybe," Julie smiled, "but there's a lot more and I've missed you. I've missed my son."

Kuon nodded, "I've missed you too," he said before Cain came up to Julie and Julie scooped him up holding him so close to her chest. Kuon smiled as he remembered how she would hold him as a little boy. Sometimes nostalgia did have a healing affect.

 **End Chapter Twelve**

 **AN2:** Thank you to all the supporters and readers of this story. Special shoutout to reviewers of Chapter Eleven: **brennakai, EmmaLasagna, ktoll9, Mercedes1312, PaulaGaTo**


	14. Chapter 13 - His Money-Making Face

**AN:** Thank you for reading this fic 😊 It means a lot to me.

 **Chapter Thirteen – His Money-Making Face**

Ren kept looking back at Yashiro as the two of them sat uncomfortably with the people who were responsible for the R Mandy models. Kuon had known that he would feel uncomfortable telling them that he couldn't model because his money-making face had been half destroyed but he had expected it to be an open and shut case. It was for most people.

However, the two women and one man who were responsible for which models they hired were continuing to have a private discussion even at this point.

Yashiro looked at Ren who was trying to keep calm and taking deep breaths, "Be careful," Yashiro said teasingly, "I think your Kuon is showing, Ren," he said and Ren shook his head.

"Not even close, Kuon would have stormed out because he'd have no time for this," Ren winked back at Yashiro as the two of them sat there not a part of the conversation. "I wonder what they really are saying," he said as he closed his eyes again.

"Probably deciding what to get you as a thank you gift," Yashiro shrugged, "that or decide on the bouquet for their get well soon card."

Kuon looked down and sighed, "I don't think that that's the case, could it be something on the contract?" he asked and Yashiro shook his head.

"Not that I'm aware of and I've already been told by the president that LME will cover the charges if there is something that we're unaware of, but no, in a case such as yours it should be you handing in your resignation and them immediately agreeing to it.

Kuon sighed and kept his eyes closed, "We don't have any other appointments for today?" he asked and Yashiro sighed.

"Just the interview this afternoon and I think that should be fine," he told Kuon getting a little worried about how he was dealing with all of this. So many different problems were dumped on his lap for him to deal with all at one time. Kuon nodded and both men remained quiet until the team had sat down.

The man spoke first, "Tsuruga-san, we would like to ask you to continue on as a model to represent the R. Mandy brand."

Yashiro looked at Ren with a raised eyebrow before nodding, "Interesting," he said as he studied Ren who looked like he had the air knocked out of his lungs by a strong punch.

"You want to keep me on as a model?" he asked before pointing to his face, "With this burn?" he asked them as they nodded.

"We see you with great power and appeal to our readers," one of the women said and Ren looked at her.

"This," he continued to point to the burnt side of his face, "Is upsetting and terrifying and you _still_ want people to look at me modelling the R. Mandy line." Ren tried to say, "It won't come off, I'm stuck with this for the rest of my life."

"We think that you will still be a model that is suited for both our print and runway work," the other woman commented and Kuon looked at the two of them. Were they _kidding_?

"With this burn?" he tried to clarify.

"Some of the time we might want you to wear a mask or pose in a certain way, but with the proper photoshopping of the image, we can make it into something that will give excitement to our readers," the man said as Kuon looked at them as if they were all high. Had they been snorting something when they had all been huddled together?

"I can agree to that," Ren said slowly and carefully, he studied the group of them. "I think that would be fine," he continued to say before looking back at Yashiro as he nodded. "So, you want to keep me as a model but hide the burn?" he asked just to make sure that he was hearing it right.

"Most of the time, yes," the man nodded.

"Okay, I'll stay on as a model for as long as you want," Ren nodded in agreement. "Is there anything that we need to need to discuss further?" he asked as he sat there quite stunned.

"We'd like you to do a PSA to help those with burns, if you agree to it?" one of the women said as Kuon nodded weakly. "It would really help us have a softer image to the public."

"That's fine," Ren nodded before the R. Mandy people stood together.

"Thank you for coming to see us," they bowed as Ren and Yashiro bowed as well and then left. Kuon was still extremely confused with what they had said to him. Was the unburnt side of his face really worth this?

As they stood in the hallway, Kuon sighed, "Do we have some time right now? I'd like to make a phone call," he told his manager as he checked the time. Kyoko should be between lessons at this point and she had asked that he phone her to tell her how things went.

Yashiro nodded with a playful smile on his face, "Contacting Kyoko are we?" he winked as Kuon nodded and stepped away to take care of the call.

…..

…..

Kyoko gazed out the window as she watched a bird flying in the sky. She really hoped that she could see Kuon fly like that again. She could understand that right now he had a much bleaker view of life and she didn't blame him. She still loved him and wanted the best for him though. He deserved a good life where people didn't hurt him because of the way that he looked.

"So, that boyfriend of yours is ugly just like you," Mimori said and Kyoko shook her head.

"Very original aren't we?" she asked with a frown. "Have you asked Sho out yet?"

Mimori stood looking very affronted by that question. "Sho is a delicate person and you need to be careful when you deal with him. He is of the purest variety, he's not a dirty mutt like yours," Mimori said as Kyoko glared at her and then looked away.

"You'll see," she said which was all that she felt she needed to say.

As she looked out of the window, she heard her phone buzz and took it out of her pocket. It was most likely her amazing and gorgeous boyfriend. "Hi, Ren. How are you feeling? Did it go as badly as you imagined?"

"They want to keep me as a model," Kuon replied and Kyoko smiled. He sounded completely stunned about the idea, but Kyoko had been thinking that this was an option. "That's great, right? They are seeing you for who you really are."

"They want me to wear a mask in their pictures, which I'm fine with, but I'm wondering if they only want to keep me out of sympathy," Kuon admitted and Kyoko looked out the window again.

"Baby, they want to keep you because you've been ranked the sexiest man in Japan a few times now. They want to keep you because you're Japan's favorite actor still. They want you because of you. If they want you to wear a mask then isn't that okay? You wear your mask most of the time anyway because you don't want people staring at you," she commented and Kuon sighed.

"I suppose you're right, princess," Kuon told her and Kyoko smiled.

"I love you, Ren," she said as he chuckled a little.

"I love you too, you always know how to make me feel a bit better about myself. Thank you." Kuon said as Kyoko blushed a little.

"You're welcome, any time. Okay, I'll let you go, will I see you later?" she asked and Kuon laughed.

"You want me to collect you from school?" he asked her and Kyoko looked around.

"Maybe, if it's not too much trouble for you," she said, "but if it is then you don't have to. If you have other things that you're doing."

"I'll meet you then." Kuon said before they exchanged their goodbyes. Kyoko felt a slight twinge of guilt as she thought about him appearing in public like that. Wouldn't there be flocks of girls crowding around him? However, she wanted him to know that he was so loved and she would proudly call him her boyfriend. She just hoped that he would be okay emotionally.

…..

…..

After Kyoko finished classes, she made sure she had everything and then quickly went to the outside of the building where she heard the chatter of the crowd. Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe she was being selfish and wasn't thinking of Kuon's complicated feelings. She didn't want him to ever associate her with pain or embarrassment.

"It can't be him, right?" one of the girls said. "He's even more handsome in person."

"Despite that burn on his face?" another girl asked her.

"Of course," the first girl replied. "I wonder if he's looking for a date. I've heard that he's single."

"Does he like high school girls?" another girl said as Kyoko saw the herd approach Ren, "I'm so glad that I'm in uniform."

As she walked along, Kyoko saw that Kuon had taken notice of her and had stepped out, ignoring the girls that wanted to touch him, stroke him, latch onto him. He walked over to Kyoko and let his hand run through her hair before cupping her cheek and kissing her in front of everyone. Kyoko wrapped her arms around his shoulders as she blushed.

"Hi," he said to her in a dreamy manner, "Are you ready to go?"

"Of course. I want to hear all about your day," she said as she tried to ignore that nearly every girl who attended the high school and had come on that day was staring at the two of them wide-eyed. "I also wanted to share a bit of news with you."

"Then I'd love to hear it, princess," he said with passion in his eyes as Kyoko knew how much he loved her. Only a guy who loved her would be willing to do this in front of everyone. It wasn't as if Sho had ever doing this. "Let's go," he said as he led her to his car ignoring the people who were calling out that they still loved him.

When they got into the car, Kuon smiled at her and allowed himself to act outside of character Ren Tsuruga. "So, what's the news?" he asked as he started the car and Kyoko nervously looked at him and then looked down.

"I was offered a role in your drama," she said to him as Kuon nodded as if he had been expecting that. Kyoko noticed how he still looked happy and she really hope that that was a good sign. "I wanted to know if you had any feelings against me taking it?" she said respectfully.

"I am happy if you take it," he told her, "Are you okay that it's a smaller role?"

Kyoko looked down, "I'm just really really happy that I get to act with you again," she told him and Kuon smiled even more at that. "So, I'll take that as an it's okay?"

"Definitely, I'm looking forward to acting with you as well," he said as he took her hand when they had reached the spotlight and squeezed it. "That means we'll be seeing a lot more of each other," he said as Kyoko blushed. She was glad that he was happy about it and seeing more of Kuon was most definitely a plus.

 **End of Chapter Thirteen**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Special Thank You to Chapter Twelve reviewers:**

Brennakai, EmmaLasagna, PaulaGaTo


	15. Chapter 14-Your Courage and Your Ability

**AN:** Enjoy! I wrote two scenes which are both quite different but I love them both and hope you do too!

 **Chapter Fourteen – Your Courage and Your Ability**

Kuon smiled as he sat in the exclusive restaurant opposite his mother. This was their chance to do some bonding and Kuon had requested he sit with the mask on despite it being more difficult for him to eat with it on. The mask he was wearing now was a black leather one that cupped half his face and the top and back of his head. He would have to find something for hotter weather because, even though there was a soft cotton underneath, it did get hot.

"You should take it off," Julie said as she saw Kuon's eyes dart nervously around the restaurant. She allowed her thumb to rub the back of her son's hand and continued to smile to him. "I don't think that it'll cause any problems if you do, besides most people are turned away from it."

Kuon looked down, "Don't you want to have a nice meal though, Mom?" he asked her and Julie hummed.

She took his hand and then squeezed it gently to show her support, "I _will_ have a nice meal. I am sitting in a nice restaurant with my son who I spent so many years not seeing. I am with my little boy, nothing could make a mother happier."

Kuon looked down and then made direct eye contact. He looked a little scared and a little shy. "Are you…are you sure that it's okay?" he asked and Julie hummed happily.

"Of course," she nodded, "I think I'm going to have a salad to start with and then this sashimi selection looks nice, of course I'd like to get the rice too," she said as Kuon slid the mask off of his face to show the burn. He looked at his mother as if he was a young child.

"Are you sure this is okay?" he asked her. Julie smiled up at him, her eyes taking in his whole face. Though it did sadden her inside to know that her son would have to go through his life with a reminder of such pain and the knowledge of the event, she had to say that she had become used to it and it wasn't as bad seeing it as in the beginning. She wanted to remember him without that burn but he was still handsome. She was ecstatic to hear that the modelling and acting world agreed on this fact.

"You look gorgeous, sweetheart," Julie smiled as Kuon looked away awkwardly. "I really am glad that we are having dinner and you're allowing me a chance to get to know you as an adult. However, if you want to leave, we can."

Kuon shook his head, "I might just go for the yakitori appetizer as an entrée," he said as Julie looked at him confused.

"Is it alright? Are you sure that you're okay being here? That's not a lot of food and if you don't feel like eating anything then…" Julie hesitated and Kuon laughed.

"I don't eat very much," he told her as he started to realize that very few people had had confirmation of his relationship with his mother or his true identity until this moment. He hadn't been thinking. He chuckled as he remembered it. "I think that most people are wondering what the two of us are doing together," he told her and Julie rolled her eyes before looking at him in a more serious manner.

"Is that okay?" she asked concerned, "I'm sorry. I didn't want to blow your cover, are you sure that we're still okay?"

"It's fine," Kuon smiled as he looked her over. "As long as the same people who want me can understand a different name, I'll explain everything. I'll contact Boss and set up a time when there can be a press conference. Right now, I'm just glad that I'm alive."

Julie smiled to him as her heart beat softly in her chest. "You've grown up into such a strong young man," she commented, "I just wish that I could have helped with that."

Kuon laughed, "The only reason why I can be so strong is because of the love that you and dad showed me as a child. If I hadn't had that security when I was a kid I would have become worse. I would have turned to revenge because of my face but instead I choose to fight. I choose to try to have a life with a woman that I'm in love with and who I hope is in love with me."

Julie laughed, "She does love you," she said and Kuon smiled before seeing a woman come over to them, tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, you don't…" she said as Julie recognized her as one of Japan's great fashion designers who mainly focused on bags and accessories. "You don't know me but I…"

Kuon tilted his head to the side as he watched this woman, as she paused he looked away. "I'd be happy to sign something for you but I'm not…I don't take photographs with people anymore, or at least not yet."

The woman shook her head, "I wanted to say thank you," she said to Kuon as he blinked confused. "My son has a severe burn on his cheek and neck from an accident he and my husband were in when he was a young boy. He's never been able to have surgery on it and he had become reserved recently since he has just started middle school. However, he managed to break free from his depression when he saw that you were still fighting…Tsuruga-san," she said to him as Julie felt tears in her eyes and Kuon had a surprised expression on his face.

"I was so worried about him becoming depressed, but he says that seeing your courage and your ability to fight has led to him wanting to pursue his dreams of being a doctor. Thank you," the woman bowed to them and Kuon's mouth opened, he hadn't even been thinking about this other than the way that wanted to use him as inspiration.

"You're welcome," Kuon said with a happy smile on his face, "Thank you. Do you have a business card or the name of your work?" he asked and the woman blinked before nodding. Since she was a prominent designer who only worked with female models, Kuon hadn't really matched her well-known name to a face.

"Of course," the woman said as she handed it to him, "I mean, I don't think we've been in the same groups before, my aesthetic is so different than yours. I mainly do purses and clutches and -"

Kuon looked at her, "Thank you" he said. "Do you think it might be possible to one day come in and talk to your son. I hope that isn't an intrusion on your privacy and if you're against it, please let me know. I've dealt with depression in the past myself when I was around your son's age." He stood and then bowed deeply, "I apologize if this is too forward of me."

"You'd do that?" the woman asked and Kuon nodded.

"Of course," he said, "as long as you're okay with it."

The woman didn't know what to say and rather impulsively, she threw her arms around Kuon and hugged him before pulling back and wiping away the tears. "Thank you, so so much," she said and Kuon nodded. He looked back at his mother who was watching him with so much pride in how he had turned out.

…

…

" _Do you want me to kill the story that you're Kuon HIzuri?"_

" _No, let it run and can you set up a press conference?"_

Those were the words that Kuon was reflecting on. That morning a newspaper had come out and in the celebrity gossip section there were numerous pages about his and his father's career and how they were father and son. It had taken a lot of people by surprise and for a moment or two, Kuon had been concerned that he hadn't asked his father if he could do this. Seeing the joyous look on Kuu's face however had told him that he had nothing to worry about.

As Kuon arrived on the set, he saw Taira standing there looking displeased about this. "Good morning," Kuon smiled as he bowed and Taira continued to look at him, his eyes as if interrogating him. "Is something -"

"Did you ever hear that Kuu HIzuri is my idol?" he asked and Kuon smiled.

"Isn't he the idol to a lot of people?" he asked and Taira sighed, he looked up at the sky as if all his answers could be located there. Once the two were making eye contact again, Kuon looked at him with a shrug. "Nobody really knew before this morning," he told him as Taira continued to stare at him. "It's not as if I asked for or wanted my father to help me get roles so I developed a character and a stage name. Tsuruga Ren is _still_ my stage name."

"At least now I know where you get your skills from," Taira said as he watched him. "I can't believe that Ren Tsuruga, Kuu Hizuri's son, and that asshole Cain Heel are all the same person," he whispered as Kuon shrugged.

"I'm a good actor," Kuon said weakly and Taira nodded.

"I think that's an understatement. See, now I am really scared of you or impressed by you and I thought we could try to work together in a good relationship. I'm willing to put the past behind us and try, besides you've shown up early for the day," Taira said before looking around. "Your manager isn't with you?"

"He's helping with one of our costars," Kuon said before catching Yashiro approaching with Kyoko in toe. Kyoko smiled as she went to take Kuon's hand and then looked up at Taira with a soft smile.

She bowed deeply and then rose with a professional smile, "Hello, Mogami Kyoko, nice to meet you. I'm taking one of the roles on at short notice" she looked up at Kuon, leaned up, and kissed the burnt skin very lightly, almost not touching it. Taira looked between the two of them and then his eyes widened as he realized the action.

"Are you…did you?" he asked as Kyoko blinked playing confused. "You're that damn lovey dovey sister, aren't you?" he asked and Kyoko rolled her eyes.

"I was acting that," she said before grinning at her boyfriend. "I'm Ren's girlfriend," she explained as Taira looked at them as if a ghost had just entered his body. He was extremely pale and then turned. "I really don't think your head is like cheese," she called out after him as Taira flinched. Kyoko giggled and looked up at Kuon. "Oh dear, do you think we broke him?" she asked playfully.

"That is always a possibility," Kuon said before looking at Yashiro, "I know I should have run it by you…" he tried to apologize as Yashiro frowned but then rolled his eyes with a smile.

"I'm going to be buried by this paperwork, you know" he said, "but it's much better that I knew before hand who you are. I'm going to have to have you bring me a lot of coffee with all of these sleepless nights."

Kuon nodded, "If there's anything I can do," he attempted to offer and Yashiro shook his head.

"Just try to continue being happy" he said and Kuon nodded. That wasn't too hard a thing to do especially when he had Kyoko beside him.

 **End of Chapter Fourteen**

 **Thank you so much for reading**

 **Review if you'd like to, Reviews are definitely considered in the quickness of the updates.  
Actually, I'm pondering whether to put this fic on hiatus. It's had 60 hits and not a single review. Oh well, I guess that's what it means quickness of the updates. The Lake in the Park didn't have one review for 100 hits and it was on hold for a month. **

**Thank you Reviewers of Chapter Thirteen**

Ashenvale, black neko hime, brennakai, EmmaLasagna, Guest, ktoll9, PaulaGaTo


	16. Chapter 15- Those fake RenTsuruga smiles

**AN:** Hope you enjoy this chapter. I am trying my hardest not to worry about reviews anymore because it makes me sad when I don't get them and I have to stop that. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Fifteen –** Those fake Ren Tsuruga smiles

As Kuon picked her up for work that morning, Kyoko couldn't help but notice a serious but somewhat hurt expression on his face. She could tell how worried he was and she could tell that it wasn't the burn that was haunting him this morning. She also watched as Yashiro tried to avoid maintaining eye contact with him for too long.

They were supposed to be starting filming today. Was that what Kuon was worried about? Was he worried how Ren Tsuruga's face would appear on camera and how the director would incorporate the burn? Was he worried of how the public would take his appearance or was it more? Was the fear one that she had shared in the past, of only being cast as the villain?

Whereas before she would never find it her place to ask him what was happening, now that she was his girlfriend did that give her more of a right to know? Did he expect her to ask what the cold tension was about? As she buckled herself into the seat she tried to figure out what to do next when she heard his voice.

"They want me to testify against them in open court," Kuon told her.

"Which I'm saying is a good idea," Yashiro spoke up and Kuon sighed.

"And I'm saying that it isn't. Bringing this to court would do more harm than good and it would increase tensions between the American gangs," Kuon said as he ran his hand through his hair. Kyoko watched him. Was it more than that? Was he scared of what bringing his past, his name, into the public world would do. People were starting to learn of his identity anyway even if it was just gossip.

"Kuon, the world doesn't care who you were then, lots of successful people -" Yashiro said and Kuon shot him a look asking him to be quiet. Kyoko looked down.

Most people would have a high level of anger at men who had approached this and done this to them. Even the leaders of crime mobs would want revenge and maybe they would seek it in an illegal and hurtful manner, but they would want revenge. For many law abiding citizens, or even good guys with a dark past (like Kuon), they would want to see these men serve time for their actions.

As much as she didn't want to say anything, she was confused about why her boyfriend didn't want to talk about this. He knew that when he came out as Kuon, pieces of his past would follow but they also had Lory backing them up and protecting him despite the past failure to do so.

"What if these men walk free after doing this to you?" Yashiro asked as he tried to argue his side of the case and Kyoko looked down. That was her biggest fear about all of this. She was scared that these men, or even different men, would come after Kuon again and he wouldn't survive it.

"Then they walk free," Kuon told Yashiro. "I'll be ready for if they try to come after me again."

"I agree with Yashiro-san," Kyoko admitted as she saw Kuon look at her in shock before he concentrated back on the road. "I understand that you don't want to let people know the real you. I don't think that even I know who you were during your teenage years, but if these men walk free they could come after you again or they could come after someone else."

Yashiro nodded, "Your loved ones might not be safe, Kyo-" Yashiro tried to reason with his client but Kyoko cut him off.

"Kuu-sama and your mother seem to have been helping you for years. If there's any danger to them then," Kyoko tried to persuade him and Kuon sighed. He nodded at that.

"Then for my loved ones, I'll do it but if this goes badly then I want you to be as far away from me as possible, can you agree to that condition?" he asked her and Kyoko froze before shaking her head and letting a couple of tears slip down her cheeks.

"Never," she said. "I want to be with _you_ , Kuon, no matter how dangerous our journey together gets."

…..

…..

As they got to the location, Kyoko looked at Kuon as he parked the car and the just started staring in front of him at the blank space. This look on his face was familiar to her as the one when he had been in the car stunt during the Dark Moon filming but dialed back ninety-percent. Kyoko looked at Yashiro before she got out of the car.

"Yashiro-san," she began to speak in her formal and polite tone. "Would it be okay to have a moment alone with Kuon?" she asked and the manager nodded. He knew that Kyoko was the best bet to pull Kuon out of this trance. He just hoped the actor would be able to perform his job afterwards.

As Yashiro got out of the car, Kyoko slipped in and placed a hand on Kuon's wrist.

"Hey," she smiled in her warm and uplifiting manner. "What's going on in that head of yours, Kuon?" she asked as she let her fingers go through his hair in an attempt to soothe him. "I know you don't run away from things easily. Whyare you -"

"You promise that you won't make fun of me?" Kuon asked as Kyoko opened her mouth but was unsure of what to say.

"This is something that I'd make fun of you for?" she asked as he looked away from her and she concentrated on his burn. Was that what was giving him difficulty? Was he afraid or even ashamed to stand up in court with his face looking like this and explain what happened. Was he afraid that an artist would take a sketch of how he looked?

Had he been told that the burn would worsen or that more of his skin was affected? No matter how he looked, Kyoko didn't care, she loved him and that's all that mattered. Looks were definitely not the most important thing, but Kuon did still look damn good looking.

"I'm scared," Kuon said as he looked at the dashboard of the car and Kyoko paused. No, she hadn't been expecting him to admit that. She did understand it though.

"Kuon, after what they did to you, if anyone had had to go through that then I can't imagine a way in which they could come out not being afraid but I'd remember that there are things in this world that we can latch onto. Are you scared of seeing them?" she asked and Kuon looked in front of him.

"I'm terrified of remembering that night. I've been powerless before, Kyoko, but it was a long time ago. I've always been able to stand up for myself and defend myself as if it's been necessary but this time I couldn't. Despite the knowledge that I had to fight to stay alive, I couldn't protect myself and I don't want to remember that."

Kyoko froze. If she hadn't have been his girlfriend, if they hadn't started dating then she would be seeing one of those fake Ren Tsuruga smiles as he told her that there was nothing wrong when there seemed to be something obvious which was. This was a face that wasn't being masked by any of those false smiles or the confidence of the great actor. This was Kuon actually admitting to being human.

"It's not funny," Kyoko nodded in agreement as she kissed his cheek, "but you're here now and the first step to being brave is to go against something that you're afraid of. I really wish that I had a voodoo doll that I could use to curse those people but I don't think even that type of magic is strong enough. What I _can_ do however is to tell you that you can talk to me if you ever do feel afraid." She saw Kuon looking in front of himself and she sighed before an idea came to her. "I can even dress up as a rooster if that makes it easier."

"You don't have to do that, just knowing that you love me is good enough, besides we shouldn't keep everyone waiting. It would be selfish to do that," he teased her and Kyoko laughed.

"Sure, but if you do want to take a breather then…" Kyoko said and Kuon got out of the car and then went around to open the door for her.

"I will. You know, I might actually eat the bento box that they have for me today," he said and Kyoko smiled playfully and raised an eyebrow.

"I was going to make sure you ate it anyway, Kuon," she told him as they went to join the other actors.

…..

…..

 _Ren was fixing himself something to drink whilst he looked over the script for the upcoming movie he would be starring in. He had to say that sometimes performing in a movie was harder than a drama. Whilst a lot of actors would say that the character didn't have to be developed since there was usually no continuation of the story and they existed only for a couple of hours, Ren wanted to show as much of the character as possible in that short time._

 _Even when he had been starting out as an actor and his characters didn't have as much time on screen, he would try to give performances that inspired people to write about the character. He wanted to be someone who was noticed, someone who everyone knew the name of._

 _It was a little selfish though._

 _He wanted to make the character well-known, he wanted to make the name Ren Tsuruga a well-known name, but he wanted Kuon Hizuri to be a mystery. Maybe he should invest some time in trying to decide who Kuon Hizuri was and why he was always struggling so hard not to use his real name. He had to believe that he was a better person than he had been in the past. He had to prove to himself that he had changed, but he was scared._

 _Would taking away the identity of Tsuruga Ren cause everything that he had made to crumble to pieces?_

 _Would he instantly have a change in personality for no reason other than a name?_

 _Would a rose by any other name smell as sweet?_

 _Ren sighed and ran his fingers through his brown hair. The messages that he had been receiving were putting him on edge as well. He had shown them to the president and he was telling him that he would do whatever was necessary to keep Ren safe. It still didn't make it any stranger to have been found._

 _Well, he had defended himself against them in the past, he could defend himself against them now. He was better and faster and stronger now, they shouldn't pose a threat to him anymore. Ren's eyes widened as he heard a beep and then his head turned. Someone had just hacked their way into his apartment._

 _What the heck!?_

 **End of Chapter Fifteen**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Special Thank you to Reviewers of Chapter Fourteen**

Aiphing, Crazy4Animation, Kris, Mainaru974, PaulaGaTo, Sara


	17. Chapter 16 - Every Possible Future You

**AN:** Thank you for your patience. I haven't updated this fic for a couple of weeks so thank you for that. I recently suffered from a concussion that I am steadily recovering from. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Sixteen – Every Possible Future You**

 _Ren's eyes caught to the door. He had always chosen this apartment from the options the president had given to him because of its high security systems. They were known for housing wealthy people and that included other actors and musicians. How could they get around the security unless it was by force?_

 _Yes. That's exactly how they were able to do it and if they had strength, he needed strength._

 _Weapons were good but they would make it so that your hands weren't free. Weapons could stab and wound, they could kill if someone used them close enough. He had to make sure that they didn't get close enough. Instead his hand wrapped around a picture of Kyoko and he put it in the pocket of his shirt._

 _At least he had some stronger force to fight for. He just had to remember her voice and -_

….

….

"Here," Kyoko smiled as she set down a lunch bento in front of her boyfriend. "I know you must not be feeling as if you want to eat a lot but I did my best to pick out some food that's easy to eat." Kuon blinked before looking down at where there was a salad and light soup with some rice and vegetables. Kyoko had a more filling entrée on her plate. "I asked for something light since I didn't think that you'd want to force yourself today."

Kuon blinked surprised before smiling, "Thank you," he told her before he reached for his mask. He hadn't remembered to put it on because in the scene they were doing his burns were exposed to bring depth to his villainous character.

Kyoko watched him as Yashiro came and sat between them at the table. "Do you have to wear that because the soup is too hot?" she asked as she looked down at his tray. "Maybe I shouldn't have -"

"It's very numb," Kuon told her, "The soup is fine. It's for a different reason that I'm putting it on."

Kyoko tilted her head to the side. "Because it hurts? Maybe there's some ointment here or have you considered getting some special medicine for it." Kyoko only stopped talking when she felt Kuon put his hand on top of hers and then he held it in his own.

"It's because _you're_ eating," he told her honestly. "I don't want to stop you from eating. I don't want to ruin your appetite."

Kyoko frowned at him before flicking him on the healthy side of his forehead. "You idiot," she smiled softly as she put her hand down. "How can I lose my appetite when I'm sitting opposite the man that I love? I don't want you to think that you have to wear a mask for me. I want you to be yourself."

"I think that's all that you two ever want from each other," Yashiro said before starting to eat his own meal. "Can I ask you where you were during filming though? Once the director called cut you seemed to go somewhere in your mind."

Kuon shook his head before closing his eyes again as the painful memories slipped back.

…..

…..

 _Ren closed his eyes for a brief moment as he got himself into character and made sure he was prepared for any surprise that would come from through that deactivated door. He took a few deep breaths as he saw two men that he recognized along with others that he didn't._

 _His eyes were focused mainly on a white man with black hair cut to his shoulders that was somewhat wavy. His eyes were a deep blue and he was wearing a leather jacket, leather pants, and a black tank. In his hand was a black metal pipe and to his side was another man – one Kuon didn't know – who resembled a weasel and was holding a key fob with a lot of technological gadgets on it. Was he the reason they got in?_

 _As Ren kept his eyes on them, he tried to observe the four other men who were going around breaking things and as one man stood directly behind him with a gun, he couldn't keep focus any longer. He threw his leg back with force as he managed to disarm the man. Guns were something that nobody could be hurt by without knowing how to defend themselves from the wound._

 _He hated guns despite performing with them._

" _So," the man before him walked forwards and grabbed his chin. "We meet again, Kuon," he said with a laugh. "You were always an unwanted mutant. A freak. To know that you fled like a chicken after you were responsible for your boy's death."_

 _Ren glared at him and forced himself away. He formed a fist and went in for a punch before feeling someone holding him from behind. Was he really outnumbered? He had taken more men than this. Then again, he was fighting every night during those days and then he had found things that made his life better._

 _Were these men seriously going to slaughter him tonight?_

…..

…..

"Kuon," Kyoko said nervously as she waved her hand in front of his face. She sighed and touched his cheek with one hand and felt his forehead with the other. "You look so pale," she told him and Kuon blinked up at her confused. His face had gone deathly pale and he kept shaking. It was so different from the strong Ren Tsuruga who tried not to show if anything bothered him.

"Did you want me to call for a medic?" Yashiro asked, he as well was concerned for his client.

Kuon looked down at the food and shook his head. He didn't want to tell them what he was thinking about. Yashiro had been the one who had saved him from death and Kyoko was the one who motivated him enough so that he wouldn't think of the easy escape from all of this.

"I think that I'd like to see a therapist," he told them as he looked down and Kyoko nodded. He looked up at her nervously as if her thoughts about him would be changed forever from that one suggestion. She just looked at him with so much compassion in her eyes and understanding.

"We can set that up," Yashiro nodded, "Let me ask the president if there's anybody that he recommends."

Kyoko looked at her boyfriend and sighed. "Corn," she said gently as she used the name that she treasured so much for him. The name that always brought her back to their childhood and proved to her that she could be loved so deeply. "You know that your burn doesn't define you, right? That situation – what happened in that situation, that doesn't tell you who you are. It was a planned attack and I know that there was some cause for it starting but it would be wrong to blame you for that."

"When I met the men who did this, I was a very different person. I wasn't the type of person who deserved to have acting roles and I wasn't a good person inside of my heart. I was -"

"I don't care," Kyoko said as she cut him off from tearing himself down. She looked down as the two men watched her. "I mean, yes, I do care about your past but that person that you were then. That wasn't the real Kuon Hizuri or at least it isn't _you_. That person was part of your past and they had gone through some bad times. I would hate for you to only see me as the girl who was fueled by revenge and didn't know how to love and only wanted to use getting famous to beat somebody else down. Is that how you see me?" she asked with her head tilted to the side.

Kuon stared at her and immediately shook his head. "Of course not. You are the most hardworking, persevering, risk taking person I know. You aren't afraid to fight for your dreams but you encourage others as well. You want to be the best on an even playing field and you're talented enough to do so. However, your kindness can't be matched. You do your very best to help others and you are able to sit down and listen to somebody whilst accepting their faults. You're smart and resourceful. You're the woman that I'm in love with."

"See, you're the man who I'm in love with and the only one who I've shared a mutual love with," Kyoko grinned. "You have many different parts of you and I care to the extent that that was your past, those are memories that one day I'd like to help you with. Those are things that made up your past but I care about the present you. I'd like to say that I want to get to know every possible future you."

"So, it doesn't matter that I hurt people," Kuon said regretfully and Kyoko sighed.

"You're different now. You've looked upon your past as something that helps you evolve into someone better. If you were still going around hurting people then I don't know how I would feel but you internalize your pain now. In some ways that's good but only if you let me in and you let me talk about all of those things with you," Kyoko placed a hand on his cheek and looked into his eyes. "Do you understand?"

"Yes," he smiled at her as he finally relaxed. "Yes, I understand. Thank you."

Kyoko smiled happily and she returned to eating her food. "You're welcome. Now, we should finish our food so we can return to shoot the next few scenes," she said as she watched him. It was true, she wanted to know every single future Kuon and she wanted to be by his side. She didn't like to return to those memories of Shotaro but when she looked at Kuon she had the feeling that one day she'd like to marry this man, live at the same address, be known as his wife.

That was the love that the president had always told her to aim for, right?

…..

…..

" _So," the lead man, Kenneth Wright, said as he held up his pipe. "You really thought that you were so strong and so able you freak. You don't know how long I have been waiting to show you what real pain feels like. You know, I didn't think about it, but beating you down in your false home would really be a pleasure for me."_

 _Ren glared at him before looking around the room. He had to find something to escape this. He had to get the men to stop holding him._

 _Weren't there rules in different countries that if men broke into your home, you were allowed to slaughter them and it was seen as self-defense. Of course, he didn't want to be a killer again. He didn't want to turn into the monster he had always imagined that he was. He had to concentrate._

 _As he focused on the man holding his right wrist and attempted to flip over with the man holding him so that he could kick him in the face, maybe even cause some damage there, he felt something stab him in his left wrist and his eyes widened as he saw a syringe._

 _This was cheating right. This meant that he had to speed up and get the antidote. He had to work faster than he ever had in the past._

 _Then why did his body feel so slow?_

 **End of Chapter Sixteen**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Special Thanks to Reviewers of Chapter Fifteen**

Crazy4Animation, Brennakai, EmmaLasagna, Kris, ktoll9, paulagato


	18. Chapter 17 - His Failure as a Parent

**AN:** This chapter is a two part from two different points of view so it's okay if you have questions, they'll be answered next chapter (hopefully) ;) thank you for reading and I really hope you enjoy.

 **Chapter Seventeen – His Failure as a Parent**

 _It had been almost three years since the accident. Almost three years since he had reached out for help. Almost three years since he had held his son, told his son that he loved him, even heard his voice…in English. Kuon was now eighteen and Kuu had been watching him from afar. He had been watching as Ren Tsuruga took his first acting role and stepped out as an actor. He had seen his improvement and how well he had blended in with the Japanese community. Still, Kuu Hizuri had no idea whether or not to count Ren Tsuruga as his son or not._

 _He just wished that he could speak to him. He wished that he could ask him how he was and that they could get a coffee together or eat dinner facing one another. Maybe they could even just sit on a park bench and he could see his son in person. Three years was a very long time to be without one's child._

" _So," Kuu heard one of his costars say, "My daughter's graduation was beautiful. She was valedictorian and…well it was so nice to go. Only the really awful parents don't go and see their son or daughter graduate. I'm glad that I -"_

" _I saw the prom photos that got delivered, did you get to see her off? When my friend's son went she took so many pictures of him in that tux. It's really the milestones at this age which matter," another actress said and Kuu looked back at the script that they were working on. He couldn't allow them to get to him. He put his sunglasses on despite it not being particularly bright. At least that symbol meant he could guard his emotions._

" _Isn't that Hizuri over there?" a male actor said and Kuu tried to pretend that he couldn't hear their conversation. "I met his son before, he's about the same age, right?"_

" _Well," the first actress said, "My daughter and his son were supposed to be in the same class because they went to the same high school but the story is that his son did something terrible and Kuu disowned him because of it. I don't think I could ever do that to my child."_

" _Wow, I never knew that. He seems like such a nice guy but then he is half-Japanese, are the Japanese really that unforgiving?" the second actress asked. "He must really expect perfection from those around him. I can't imagine not loving your child like that."_

…..

…..

Kuu couldn't sleep. He didn't know what to do and he didn't feel that going back to America was what he wanted to do. There were many things that he could still achieve in Japan and he could go back into acting here but what would that mean to his family members, what would that mean for his life and Julie's goals. Would that make Kuon feel uncomfortable?

He picked up Cain and held him to his chest as he tried to think through everything. At the time, he didn't know what to do with Kuon but that didn't mean that he didn't love him. If he didn't love him it would have been easy to disown him or even if he couldn't do that, he would take him to a mental ward or even throw him in jail. There must have been things he could have said about his son to get him into juvey. However, he would never do that. He wanted to do his best for his kid no matter how much it hurt him to do so.

He looked at the kitten and smiled. As much as he would think that a puppy would be good for his son, this cat was keeping him calm and keeping him alive. That's what made the cat so lovable to him as well. In a number of ways, this little kitten had saved his son. He turned to get one of Cain's toys to play with him before hearing a crash in the kitchen.

"Damn it!" he heard a voice say and Kuu placed the cat down in his bed hoping to keep him calm. "It has to be here," he heard more laughter and since it was a male voice that only meant that it was Kuon, it was just the three of them here.

There was another crash and Kuu went cautiously to the kitchen. He froze as he saw Kuon holding a large chef's knife and staring at it as if it was some alien artifact. He could see the way the light of the night sky bounced off of the steel blade. Something was very _very_ wrong with all of this.

"Hey," Kuu said as he approached his son and put a hand on his shoulder, the other trying to very slowly take hold of the knife. "Kuon, can I see that," he said before realizing that there were blood drops on the tiled floor. "Kuon," he said with a firmer tone in his voice. "Give me the knife."

Kuon looked in front of him as if he hadn't heard any of the words that his father had just said to him and Kuu looked into his eyes and saw the same brokenness from all of those years ago. "Kuon," he said gently as he managed to pry the knife out of his hand and set it down on the counter.

"They're going to kill me, they're going to kill her," Kuon whispered and Kuu placed a hand on his upper back. He wasn't sure what his son was talking about but he wanted to help. Passing this situation off to Lory was _not_ an option.

He wasn't sure _how_ to handle it so he just grabbed Kuon's lower arms before he could do anything and forced his son to look at him. They were both amazing athletes but Kuu had to think about the ways in which Kuon had grown since fifteen. His son most likely outperformed him now.

"Kuon, we're the only two here. Try to think clearly," he told him as he saw how panicked and terrified his son actually looked. Kuu tried to maintain eye contact with him though he really wanted to take a look at the blood. He knew that Kuon would panic if he tried to take a look at the wound without him calming down first.

After Kuon started matching his inhale and exhale, Kuu saw him starting to come into reality a little more and smiled before looking at Kuon's arm. "I'm going to get you some bandages. It's good to have you with us again," he told his son as he pressed a hand to his uninjured cheek. "You okay?"

"Just get the bandages, please," Kuon told him as Kuu pulled out a chair and gestured for his son to sit down.

Kuu nodded as he went to get them and then opened the first aid kit as he sat across from his son. He reached out for Kuon's hand to take a look at the wound knowing that his son would probably have preferred to do it himself. He saw a large cut which was still bleeding running down his son's arm and sighed. He knew that Julie would be able to cover it with makeup so that nobody knew but he had no idea what was going on inside his son's mind.

He put some rubbing alcohol on it and saw Kuon grimace as he cleaned and then wrapped the wound. Kuu sat back, "Where were you just now?" he asked his son as Kuon stared at him and then looked down nervously.

"Why do you care?" Kuon asked and Kuu sat back a little as he heard that.

Of course, he cared. He was Kuon's dad.

…..

…..

" _So," Kuu heard his costar say as they looked at the young students around them. They had both volunteered to help with the disaster relief that had been arranged by their agents. Kuu was pretty sure that this man was here to make a good public image. Kuu wanted to help because of how he couldn't help his son. Kuon was going to turn twenty soon and he wouldn't be there at his side. "Rumor is you can't stand kids."_

 _Kuu looked at him shocked. "No, I…sorry that's incorrect information. I'm not sure where you would have that information but your facts are wrong. Let's do our best to help these kids. There's been a disaster here and I would rather do whatever I can to take care of them."_

" _So, you didn't hate your son and kill him, chop him up into little pieces, hide him under the floorboards?" the man said and Kuu looked completely horrified by that._

" _I love my son," he argued._

" _I'm kidding, rumor is that he went insane and you weren't equipped to deal with it." Kuu looked down before giving a dark glare at the actor._

" _We're not here to talk about my family. We're here to do some good for the community," he said as he tried to guard his heart as he had done over and over and over again these past four and a half years. His son was doing so much better without him. Wasn't that proof of his failure as a parent?_

…..

…

"Dad?" Kuon asked as he watched his father who looked as if he had been swallowed up by his own gloom. He felt as if the room around them was going cold as he saw how hurt his father was. His dad hadn't looked like that when he was a child. Was this new? "Dad, are you okay?"

"Do you think that your arm is bandaged well enough? I wouldn't want it to come open. Your mother can teach you how to cover it up with makeup so that nobody knows," Kuu said as he attempted to look okay. His son needed him to look okay.

"Dad…" Kuon said as he watched his father. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Kuu said as he looked down not wanting to tell his son how much he hated the distance they had had between them in the past. He didn't want Kuon to take on his own burden when it had been him who had set it up for Kuon to get enough breath in his lungs to fly.

"Dad," Kuon said weakly before looking down. He felt scared to ask this but he wondered if it was something his dad could help him with. "Is it possible for me to talk to you? For you to help me?" he asked and Kuu looked at him taken aback but nodded.

"Absolutely, I'll do whatever I can to help you. I love you, Kuon."

Kuu watched his son stare down at the table and knew that his son was taking a step forward and asking for advice and Kuu would really do anything within his power to help.

 **End of Chapter Seveteen**

 **Thank you so much for reading**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Sixteen:**

Aiphing, Crazy4Animation

 **Fanfiction-net word goal**

927K/1M words


	19. Chapter 18 - His Failure as a Child

**AN:** Hope you enjoy this chapter and I hope it will answer some of the questions from last chapter.

 **Chapter Eighteen – His Failure as a Child**

" _You think that you're worth anything you brat," a man said as he stood over a fourteen-year-old "actor" attempting to make it in Hollywood. He hit the script into his hand before pointing to the exit. "Get out, you don't belong here. How do you think you can act when you don't even know what you are. Dirty Japanese. Manipulative Russian. American Mutt," he said before looking away and treating the teenager as if he was worth than dirt._

 _The blond stood, he felt a coldness within him and a lack of ability to care. This was yet another time that this had happened but if the world didn't want him, if the acting world didn't want him then fine. He would do what they told him he was. He was capable of that. He smiled coldly and laughed with a little insanity before stepping up and walking out the door._

… _.._

… _.._

" _I'm planning on slaughtering you, you freak!" a man smiled as he stood with a knife opposite the same fourteen-year-old blond. The blond had blood on his clothes, on his hands on his face and that same cold grin. "You think that -"_

" _Bring your whole gang next time," the blond said as he cracked his neck and smiled a chilling grin at the people before him. He knew he could take them easily. He was always known for his physical strength and quick movements. He had agility and could do things that others couldn't with precision and skill. "Make it worth my while."_

" _You're just a monster, Hizuri. You think that you have purpose in this world but all you have is a death wish. You're a mutt. That's why I hate people who come to this country as -"_

" _I'm sorry," the blond said as his eyes sparked with a dark pain which had turned into hate of other people. "I don't understand what you're saying. Would you mind getting closer and repeating it?" he said before pulling the man by the collar and then shoved his knee into his body before skillfully removing the knife from his hand. "I can't stand weapons or cheaters," he said before tossing the knife into a wall behind him._

 _He felt three people rush towards him but before he even realized what his body was doing there were men before him in the street. He looked at two more men running off and sighed. "Cowards," he whispered before the leader managed to look up at him, blood covering him._

" _You'll regret this, Hizuri," he told him. "One day you'll come to regret this."_

 _The blond kicked the man in the stomach causing him to cough up blood before walking off with one final sentence, "I'd love to see you try."_

…..

…..

Kuon woke up shaking, he placed a hand to his cheek and flinched at the pain that touching the crisp skin caused him. He looked into the shadows and his eyes widened as he saw dark shapes. They were here. They were coming for him and coming for Kyoko. No. He couldn't let them hurt her.

He sat up in the bed and felt his entire body shaking. He closed his eyes but all he could see was Kyoko's entire face covered with the same horrifying burn. He couldn't let them touch her. She was beautiful and before she had had a beauty that only he had truly seen. He had to protect her with his life. She hadn't done anything wrong.

He had to end this.

They wanted him. They wanted to get him and so if they managed to get their wish, they would leave her alone. He wrapped an arm around his chest as he felt sick and felt his body keep shaking. He was causing all of this by becoming Kuon again. He hadn't been Ren Tsuruga when they had found him, they hadn't thought of him in that way.

He stood and felt the bile rush to his throat.

He had to stop them. If they managed to be let off on a technicality, going to court against them would mean that his life was over but not just his life. It would be those of his loved ones. It would be Kyoko. He couldn't let her look as disgusting as he did. He couldn't let her get hurt.

"You won't touch her," he whispered as he imagined the leader standing before him. "If it's me you want then take me. I'll give myself to you if you just leave her alone," he whispered whilst hating how terrified he felt. They had left him weak and defenseless in that apartment and if it wasn't for Yashiro worrying about his punctuality, he would be dead.

He had monster blood in his veins. If he got rid of it then they wouldn't detect him anymore, they wouldn't be able to even find him. They wouldn't be interested in someone normal.

Kuon didn't know how he had gone to the kitchen or that he had a knife in his hand. He was far too involved in his deep emotional pain for that. He had to get it out of him. They wanted his life, he would bleed for them and then they wouldn't touch her. He had to protect her. He had to keep her safe and happy.

Maybe that was only possible if he dug out the evil in his blood, the part that had turned him into a freak and a monster.

He felt a presence near him and suddenly it was as if the tool had been removed from his hand. No. He couldn't let them win. He couldn't let them touch her. He had to stay alive to protect her, he had to make sure that she was safe.

"They're going to kill me," he whispered thinking that he was talking to himself, "They're going to kill her." He felt someone grab him and he froze. Was this it? Were they going to kill him!? As he felt someone touch him, he blinked and saw his father before him with such a deep level of concern. He had to calm down. He had to breathe and think clearly.

As he measured his breaths, the world around him seemed to turn less hazy and he found himself in the kitchen of the safe house instead of the fog that he had imagined before. He still saw his dad there and tried not to let his fear affect his father. His father touched his forehead before touching his unburnt cheek as if to check if he was present.

"I'm going to go get you some bandages. It's good to have you with us again," he said and Kuon looked around and felt the pain in his arm. Where was he? Was all of that just part of the nightmare? Were they here? Had Yashiro even come to the apartment or was this some type of purgatory? He saw his dad making eye contact with him as he asked in the way a good father did, "You okay?"

Kuon shivered. He didn't know how to answer that. He wasn't okay. He was far from okay but he couldn't let his father know that. He didn't know what to say so just bowed his head and whispered weakly, "Just get the bandages, please." He saw his dad pull out a chair and realized how unsteady he felt. Was his father noticing that? He sat down.

Everything was starting to make sense to him again but the cut hurt. It was sore and he didn't know why he had done that. He had always taken such good care of his body. His body was part of his craft, he had to take care of it. Yes, sometimes he didn't eat but he hadn't hurt himself like this in years.

He felt the pain when his father started cleaning his wound for him.

His father had always been there for him when he was a child. Yes, there were times when he had been ignored because of the hectic schedules of his parents' lives and how he questioned his importance to them but his dad had always done his best. That was why he was there. Still, after all of this pain, Kuon didn't want his father to experience it further. He saw his dad looking at him concerned, "Where were you just now?" he asked.

That question hurt. He didn't want to admit that he was scared and he definitely didn't want to admit that to his father. "Why do you care?" he asked not meaning to say it with the directness and harshness that he did. He froze as he saw his father's expression turn into one of a deep depression.

He saw Kuu hang his head and look down as if thinking that everything was his fault and Kuon felt his breath trap in his chest. His dad had taken such care to clean the wound and bandage his arm up. He had tried to do whatever he could to bring him back here and he had hurt him. Kuon nervously saw his dad withdraw into himself in the same way that he did. The way Kyoko saved him from.

After Kuu had sat in his own stillness, Kuon felt his stomach sink. When he was a child, his strong and heroic father had never looked like that. Was this the pain that he had mentioned from the feeling that he couldn't contact his own child. "Dad?" he asked concerned, "Dad, are you okay?"

Kuu looked up at him with the same concern in his eyes, "Do you think that your arm is bandaged well enough? I wouldn't want it to come open. Your mother can teach you how to cover it up with makeup so that nobody knows." Kuon opened his mouth not knowing what to say.

Was his father ignoring his own pain for his sake? That wasn't fair. He loved his father and he knew that his dad was just attempting to do what was in his best interest.

"Dad, are you okay?" Kuon asked again. He wanted to be there for his father as his father had been there for him so many times in the past. He had made sacrifices for him over and over again and Kuon felt that he was acting just like a brat and pushing him away when he didn't deserve it at all. He trusted his dad because of all he had done for him. He needed his father.

"I'm fine," Kuu said and Kuon felt his stomach plummet. He had pushed him away again when there was no need to do so. He didn't want to make his dad any more disappointed in him than he had feared he had been for those first five years.

As terrifying as it was, he had to trust this man. He loved his father and to see him withdraw from the life he was usually so energetic in. He felt the pain in his chest but looked down, "Dad?" he asked and saw Kuu pause, "Is it possible for me to talk to you? For you to help me?"

He saw his father look at him in surprise before nodding and smiling weakly at him. He knew that his father would always be there for him, both of his parents would be, he didn't have to suffer through this alone any longer.

"Absolutely," Kuu nodded, "I'll do whatever I can to help you. I love you, Kuon."

Kuon took a few more breaths before looking up and trying to smile, "I love you too, Dad." He said before looking at the table again. "I'm scared, terrified," he admitted. "I was given the court details for the trial but I can't…I'm scared, I'm scared that they'll get off. I'm scared of dying but I'm more scared that Kyoko –-" he looked down afraid to admit his fear.

"It's okay to be scared," Kuu said as he put a hand to his chest. "I'm scared for you. Every time I look at you, I'm scared that something will happen to you but I know how strong you are. I know how brave you are and you staying here in Tokyo is the bravest thing that you've done. You haven't let them chase you away but I am scared for you too. That's why I'm here because you're my son. I don't want you to be alone anymore."

Kuon looked down, "Even if I disappoint you, even if this," he pointed to the burn, "disappoints you."

"If you weren't physically injured then I would flick you in the forehead again," Kuu told him. "You don't disappoint me and the burn doesn't mean anything when it comes to how I love you. You're not hideous, you know you're not. You had a rough childhood but you've grown so much. There's nothing about you that disappoints me and even if you had turned out like the people who did this to you, I would still love you. Do you know how happy I am though that you survived and turned your life around."

Kuu smiled at his son, "I will do whatever is in my power to protect and support you and so will your mother. You're our only biological son."

"What do you think I should do?" Kuon asked and Kuu stared at the table.

"What I think doesn't matter," he told him and Kuon leaned forwards.

"Dad, please just tell me what you think I should do?" he asked and Kuu looked at him and nodded.

"Finish the drama and take a vacation. Go to New York or Chicago. Go to South Korea, Russia, the United Kingdom. I think you should put those men in jail and free yourself for a while. I think you need to take some time to think and I think you should go with Kyoko if at all possible but those are just my thoughts," Kuu said as he looked down. "It's brave of you staying in Japan but…"

"Thanks," Kuon nodded as he thought about that but he didn't know how he could leave Kyoko behind. He had to keep working as he had before. He had lost one side of his face. He couldn't lose Kyoko as well.

 **End of Chapter Eighteen**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you reviewers of Chapter Seventeen**

Brennakai, Crazy4Animation, EmmaLasagna, Kris


	20. Chapter 19 - You Have to Be the Phoenix

**AN:** I hope you enjoy this chapter despite the lack of Kyoko within it.

 **Chapter Nineteen - You have to be the phoenix**

Kuon felt as if he was invisible as he walked in the direction where his old apartment used to be. Even with everyone staring at him and the eyes of dozens of Japanese people looking at the burn. Even with the hushed whispers he heard around him, Kuon felt alone. This was a route that he had taken so many times before in the past. This used to be his way home.

As he touched the stone bricks of the apartment building, he went to the side of the building and tried to use his card key. He heard a positive beep saying that it had been read correctly and his eyes opened as he was allowed to come inside the building. He closed his eyes and tried to keep count of his breaths.

He had things to do later that day and even more to do in the following days but he wanted to at least be _here_ and try to escape the darkness by being brave and facing his fears head on. With weak breaths he got to the top of the stairs and closed his eyes. Maybe he should have taken the elevator. Maybe he should have snuck in more quietly.

He just wanted to see what had remained of the home that he had made for himself in Japan.

As Kuon pushed through the yellow tape that said that he shouldn't be up there, he walked over to the door which was still off of its hinges since Yashiro had knocked it down after seeing the smoke and hearing no response. Kuon placed a hand on it and sighed. This was the door that he would open and close when transitioning between his life as celebrity Ren Tsuruga and the mystery that he was when the cameras and lights weren't on him.

Because of what had happened that wall had come down metaphorically as well. He was one person. No matter how much he protested it, he was now only one person and he wasn't sure if it was the right pick. Who would want Kuon Hizuri over Ren Tsuruga? He stepped inside and saw how everything had either been removed from this apartment or had been burned at least partially.

This had been his home. This had been his sanctuary. No matter what type of pain he was feeling or what the root cause was, _this_ place had been his life and he felt afraid without it. Every single thing in this place had a memory attached to it and when you fought for your own life, you had to add the memories up because they all mattered. He created a fist and sighed as he pushed back on the wall of the apartment.

He felt the dust in his hand as he did so.

There was no life here anymore. They had taken away the home that he had started building for himself when he was fifteen years old. They had taken away his safety and the roof over his head. They had done this so that he couldn't go anywhere to feel safe. He just had to stand here and let the memories overwhelm him.

Kuon took a few deep breaths before he heard something click and his eyes opened whilst he scanned the area. There was somebody else in here with him.

He put his hands up in a fighting style.

Was this a trap? Had someone actually been up here and had been waiting for him to return?

Kuon grabbed his phone and quickly wrote a text with the address before putting the phone into his back pant pocket. He would only use that if he knew that he needed to. He heard a second sound and tried to control his breathing. There were two of them. He was outnumbered but he had been outnumbered before. In fact, he had taken on a whole crowd of people and been the last man standing several times.

Sometimes having people think that you didn't have the upper-hand in a situation was the best way of winning that same situation. Kuon took deep breaths to calm himself before smiling coldly.

"So, I'm afraid that I didn't receive my invite," he said as he walked towards the sink and let a finger go over the tap. He looked at the metal that hadn't been attacked by the flames and noticed a man behind where there were some burnt pieces of wood.

If the first man was there then the second man would be maybe forty-five to ninety degrees. Kuon looked around before feeling someone grab him from behind. His body felt a shock through it as he did but he had to keep his head calm. He threw the man onto the floor in front of him and kicked him to the side.

He didn't know this person. He didn't even have a gang sign on his body. Was he just hired help for somebody else?

"Where are the files, Hizuri?" someone whispered and Kuon turned in the direction of where the voice had come from. Someone was speaking to him? He took another deep breath before bowing his head with a smile.

"My apologies, I have no time for this and really I can't understand what you're say-"

Kuon approached where the man's voice had come from but as he walked the man he thought had been unconscious rolled over and stabbed him in the leg with a knife. Kuon stumbled. That didn't feel like just a stab wound.

He quickly pressed enter on the text as he looked at the man on the ground. The man pulled out another knife and stuck it into Kuon's other leg which made him fall to the ground. What was going on? He didn't know why his legs had just gone to sleep on him but this wasn't good. Why had he thought it was safe to come here?

"If at first you don't succeed," the man in the shadows sang whilst laughing, "try try again."

"What are you talking about!?" Kuon yelled out. He closed his eyes from the shock and pain that was running through his body. His eyes widened as he saw a man walk out with a bottle of gasoline and a lighter. He felt his body freeze. They couldn't possibly be thinking of the other side of his face.

"Now, that's too easy," the man said, "I want you to suffer first. Maybe I'll cut a piece of your skin off and keep it as a trophy, a little souvenir. Maybe even send it to your father. I wonder what he'd think. Did you know how much it hurt him when he didn't get to attend your graduation? Of course, you wouldn't care about that."

Kuon didn't want to argue with them about how it haunted him having to spend so long away from his parents. They wanted him to provide the ammunition and he wasn't willing to do so. Of all the painful trials that he had been through, all of them had prepared him for this. He managed to get to his feet despite the pain and grabbed the other man by the throat.

"I don't want to hear you say anything about my father," he said coldly as a spark appeared in his eyes and the man he was holding started laughing. Kuon released him and stared at him. This was strange. "So, are we going to fight because I'll kill you you -"

"I'd like to see you try," the other man said, "Right now you only look like a monster. If you kill someone then everyone will know just what kind of a monster they allowed into this country," he saw Kuon's eyes hold the realization of what a murder would mean. "You're worthless to me anyway," he said before kicking Kuon and saw his accomplice grab him and force him to the ground again.

The first man stepped on the burnt side of Kuon's face and moved his heel into the flesh. The pain might have even been worse than the fire. "You see," the man said, "I'm not attempting to destroy your home out here," he gestured and then crouched down in front of Kuon with a twisted smile on his face. "I'm attempting to destroy the home in here," he said as he tapped with his finger on Kuon's forehead.

As Kuon lay on the ground, he heard the sirens and then found men to be coming into the room. He closed his eyes with a twisted smile that hadn't been on his face for a while as he laughed. He heard fighting around him but that felt like a soothing lullaby to him.

It wasn't until he heard someone beside him with their hands on him that the trance was broken.

"Kuon," Kuu said desperately, "Kuon, can you hear me?" he asked. He looked his son over before seeing the same spark in his eyes as he had when he was scared Kuon was slipping into insanity. "Let's go to the hospital, okay?" he asked extremely concerned.

….

….

Kuu looked at his son as they sat in the hospital. Apart from the stab wounds, Kuon was in much better condition than anyone thought and the wounds had only momentarily stunned his legs, he was still quite active. Physically he was alright. Psychologically however…his son was a mess and Kuu wasn't sure what to do.

"Kuon," he said as he looked over at his son who was just staring out the window without even blinking. "There were some news reports about the incident today, the director for your new drama knows so I wouldn't worry about that. I think it's more important that we think about how to proceed with the trial."

Kuon didn't respond to him and Kuu sighed. Maybe if he phoned Lory then they could come up with some solutions together but he didn't want to do that. He didn't want to show that he was incapable of taking care of his own kid.

"Do you think it'll rain blood tomorrow?" Kuon asked as he put a hand up to the glass and Kuu's eyes widened, a shiver going down the back of his spine.

Had he just heard what he had thought he had heard?

"Kuon," Kuu said as he saw Kuon laugh a little and looked down. Was it worth telling Kyoko about this? This was just a temporary insanity, right? It would pass. Kyoko didn't need to know and Kuu had faith that his son would never hurt her. He just wasn't sure if he was right about that.

However, would Kyoko run from him if she saw him now and then how much worse would he become?

Kuu stepped forwards and pulled out a chair so that he could sit in front of his son. He gently reached out for him and put a hand on his good cheek before setting it on his shoulder. "Hey," he said though he felt that Kuon wasn't really looking at him but more through him. "Kuon, do you remember that children's book that we read when you were a kid about how there were different types of birds. Do you remember when it told the difference between the owl and the penguin and what the last bird was."

Kuon looked out the window and so Kuu tried to guide his head back so they could make eye contact, "It was the phoenix."

"Yes, because even something as destructive as fire birthed the phoenix and he became stronger because he was reborn," Kuu said, "You have to be the phoenix, Kuon, it might be the only way to survive."

 **End of Chapter Nineteen**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you, reviewers of Chapter Eighteen**

Brennakai and EmmaLasagna


	21. Chapter 20 - I need you

Hi, you know I was really feeling bad that I had updated two of my fics recently and had only had one person review them. I don't like when seventy people click on a chapter of my work and there's only one review but then I thought about it and it made me feel okay that I don't have to update as quickly as people would like or write stories I'm bored of (The Little Prince) and that when it comes to writing, I can think of what I want to do. So, the lack of reviews and the difference between hits and reviews is actually a little empowering because I don't have to feel guilty, so thanks guys.

 **Chapter Twenty - I need you.**

Lory had come to the hospital to see the man who was like a second son to him. He had seen how Kuu was upset about this and upon seeing Kuon he could see the damage. Maybe he was physically alive but his heart didn't seem to be in it anymore. He sat opposite the young man and saw the pain and disconnect in his eyes. The world had attacked him and he wasn't handling it that well.

"So, how are you feeling?" Lory asked as he looked at Kuon seeing all the ways that he had broken on the inside.

"I'm not really up to talking, Boss" Kuon said sadly before looking over at his father who had barely left the room since they had arrived after the accident.

"Alright then, so just as bad as I feared," Lory hummed as he watched Kuon. "Your burn isn't that bad and once these people are caugh-"

"They weren't caught yet, were they?" Kuon asked bitterly before shaking his head, "I really am not up to talking about it."

Lory hummed. He could see Kuon's point. These people not only attempted to kill him once but they had attempted to kill him again on his return. Frustrating wasn't the word for it. It was more than terrifying as well, it was possibly killing him more than the physical wounds might. "Do you want to continue with your acting?" Lory asked very seriously.

Kuon nodded.

"Then we'll start there and concentrate with that. I'm willing to employ some men to hide in the back as bodyguards, they won't be recognizable but I want to have some of my men around you to prevent something like this happening again. You need some form of protection," Lory told him and Kuon stared at him in a hollow manner.

"Because otherwise I'm not going to survive?" he asked and Lory sighed. "Do you really think that your men are able to go against these guys more than I can. It doesn't matter how many people you employ, Boss, it doesn't matter how many you hide in the shadows, they'll slaughter them and I'd rather not have anyone else get hurt."

Lory hummed as he looked up at the sky, "I see your point, but aside from building you a new identity and sending you to another country, I don't know how I can help you. I can trust in the legal system with my whole heart, but my brain might not think that it would help." He looked back at Kuu, "So, what are your thoughts on this?"

"Kuon is his own person. I don't dictate his choices," Kuu said sadly as he looked at the bed.

"Well, for fun," Lory said with a frown, "Let's pretend that you did. What is your take on this situation, Shuuhei?"

Kuu looked away sadly. He didn't want to say how terrified he was for his son and how his stomach kept folding over itself repeatedly. He didn't want to say how much he wanted Kuon to run away from Japan just for a chance to be safe. He didn't want to act like a parent who wasn't able to give Kuon what he needed in terms of a way to spread his wings.

"I don't think it's my place to say it," he repeated and Lory frowned again.

"Dad, I can't just…stop. I've got commitments and responsibilities," Kuon argued with him and Kuu nodded as he tried to look away from them.

"I think that Kuon should be able to make his own choices," Kuu repeated. He looked down, having heard his son say such random and disturbed things before Lory arrived showed that his kid was unraveling again and nobody could blame him. He was being targeted by a group that not only wanted to kill him but wanted to torture him until he died.

"Which means that I'm not going to have anyone protest my breaking up with Mogami-san," Kuon said and Kuu turned to look at him with wide-eyes. He knew that as much as his son was hurting and as understandable as it was that he didn't want Kyoko to get caught in the crossfire, Kyoko was the only thing that was keeping him together.

"That I have a problem with," Lory pointed out and Kuon looked at his father as if Kuu was going to help him.

"Do you love her?" Kuu asked as he made eye contact with his son. "Do you love her with all of your heart? Do you want to be with her and protect her? If you break your heart then it's very possible that she won't forgive you. You can't just do that kind of damage and think that things will be forgiven if you get into the right frame of mind."

"She'll be hurt," Kuon said as his hand shook and he thought of the possibility that they would hurt her just to further hurt him.

"I think that she'd rather be with you even through the scary parts than to be hurt by you telling her that you don't want to be with her. Kyoko is strong. You shoul-" Kuu argued passionately but paused as he heard a voice at the door which interrupted him.

"Kuon," Kyoko said as she took a step forward and looked at the man that she loved. "Do you not want me to be your girlfriend?" tears were filling her eyes but she didn't want them to fall. She looked at the men in the room before her eyes went back to her prince Corn.

"I do want to be with you," Kuon admitted before looking at the two father figures in his life "May I have a moment to speak with her alone?"

Kuu walked over to his son and wrapped his arms around him, "I'll be in the hospital if you need me. I'll give you two some time alone," he walked over to Kyoko. "If you leave before I get back would you please call me?" he whispered to her and Kyoko nodded.

She watched the men leave before sitting down opposite her older boyfriend, "What's going on, Kuon?" she asked him as she made sure not to break eye contact with him. "You really think that us ending our relationship is the best thing because I think that idea is stupid."

"You're not safe with me and I'm not right in the head," Kuon told her, "at least, I'm not right in the head anymore. Kyoko, if I go through any more of this then I really might lose my mind and trapping you like that -"

"I don't think I'll be trapped," the young woman argued. "How long have you known me, Kuon?" she asked with a hand to her chest. "We can handle this. We can be together and handle this and besides, I know that you need me as much as I need you."

Kuon sighed, "The moment that you don't feel safe," he told her, "then -"

"Then we'll talk about it but even then I'm not going to let you break up with me easily," Kyoko reached across and let her fingers slip through his hair, "I love you so much," she said and grinned as she saw his expression soften.

"I love you too."

…

…

As Kyoko walked down the street towards Darumaya, she had the feeling that somebody was following her. There were at least two people who were watching her and she had to trust in the fact that these men had been employed by the president to take care of her. Still, it made her feel anxious because the last thing she wanted was to run into the people who had done that to Kuon.

She put a hand to her cheek where Kuon's burn was and closed her eyes to stop a few tears from falling down her cheeks. She didn't want to end up with a burn like that. She knew that she might sound judgmental but she didn't care about how it made Kuon look but she was worried about it happening to her.

They wouldn't touch a lady like that, right?

Kyoko bowed her head before hearing a very annoying voice to her side.

"You break up with that creep or not?" Sho said as he came towards Kyoko and Kyoko tried to blink back enough tears that Sho wouldn't be suspicious when she glared at him. Sho stared at her, "How stupid can you get?"

"I guess I was stupid enough to fall for your crap," Kyoko bit back before she rolled her eyes. "Why are you even here. It's not as if I was missing all the time that we spent together. You know that you don't measure up to Ren."

"And you know that it's dangerous to be with him. What are you thinking? The guy has been attacked twice now. He's putting everyone around him in danger, I'm surprised that you're even more of an idiot than I gave you credit for."

"You know nothing about love," Kyoko told him as she straightened her back whilst looking at him. "I don't get it. How can you have gone all this time without any consideration to the people around you. I feel sorry for anybody who gets close to _you_."

"And your point?" Sho rolled his eyes.

"You don't know how much more painful and dangerous it is to have your heart broken but of course you wouldn't. I wonder if the media knows how you string women along and toy with their emotions. I wonder if your fans knew about that. If they knew about how you treated me and how you treat that annoying puppy who follows you around, they'd see the real you and then nobody would be able to protect you."

Kyoko was about to continue but she felt someone standing behind her and the person put their hand on her back. She looked up to see her boyfriend and smiled out of relief. She didn't want him to know that she was scared of something happening to her."

Without saying a word, Kuon turned the two of them to walk away from Shou.

Kuon took an awkward breath in, "Are you okay?" he asked as the concern flashed in his eyes.

"I am now," Kyoko smiled as she held his hand tight. She didn't want him to leave her but she had no idea how to protect him. All she could do was try to be by his side for as long as possible.

 **End of Chapter Twenty**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you, reviewers of Chapter Nineteen**

Brennakai, Kris XD, ktoll9


	22. Chapter 21 - More Turbulent Emotions

**AN:** Since I haven't worked on this fic for a while, it was a little more difficult to write it and come up with ideas therefore I didn't meet the word count that I try to achieve each chapter. Despite that though, I hope you still enjoy the chapter and thanks for your patience.

 **Chapter Twenty One – More Turbulent Emotions**

Kyoko looked across at her boyfriend as he lay on the sofa with Cain on his lap. He was finally getting some rest. That had been the hardest thing for him to do recently, just get some rest as he closed his eyes and tried not to worry about the world. Kyoko tucked a blanket over him and smiled as she placed a hand to his cheek very softly.

"You're so brave, Kuon," she said before looking around and feeling as if she should be helping the Hizuris out. She saw Cain burrow into the blanket and took a few steps backwards. Maybe it would be okay for her to watch him for a little bit longer. "I love you," she said as she put a hand to her heart. There was probably no other person in the world whom she had gone through more turbulent emotions with but they had ended up loving one another.

That was most important to her.

As she watched him, Kyoko heard a sound at the door. Her back only straightened a little since she knew that Julie wanted to go out and get some groceries for them to cook together. Although Julie's cooking was a little unusual, the woman meant well and Kyoko didn't think it would be as bad as battling Kuon's monstrous chicken dish.

"Would you mind if I did some laundry?" Kyoko said as she stood up to welcome the mother of her boyfriend home, she went to the door and felt herself gasp as she saw a man there that she didn't recognize. She looked around before grabbing hold of a lamp. "I'm…there's nothing to steal in here," she told him as she could hear her heart beating in her chest. She wanted to avoid the constant thumping but she had no clue who this person was or why he was holding a….Kyoko's eyes widened as she saw a cleaver in his hands.

He could break this lamp in her hand so easily, right?

Taking a few more nervous breaths, Kyoko felt the color drain from her face. "I can take you, you know," she said to him with a shiver.

"Oh, I know, I might be well endowed but a cute little thing like you," the man said, "Are you _his_?" he asked before pushing her up to the wall and lifting the knife to her cheek. He very slowly slid the blade down her cheek and Kyoko could feel blood from a cut. Her eyes widened as she felt herself drift in and out of reality. How deep had that cut been? She wasn't supposed to get hurt, she didn't want to lose her role as an actress.

"I mean, such a flower," the man said as he ripped her shirt and Kyoko was blinded by fear as he took out a smaller knife and held it up to the bridge of her nose. "I consider myself a re-"

Kyoko shivered as she felt herself fading out of reality due to her fear but before she knew it, there was more blood and the man was on the floor. She froze as she saw Kuon there pounding the man's face in and attacking his body as if Kuon were nothing else but an animal.

Kyoko fell down onto the ground as she looked at them stunned, "Kku—on" she said weakly as she heard the sound of the man calling out for help. She could see a sort of twisted and demented look on Kuon's face as he held the man to the ground and she felt her own pain.

"Kuon, I'm o-okay," she said before seeing the man lose consciousness. She could see her boyfriend holding the cleaver over the man's throat and so rushed towards him. Kyoko felt very glad as Kuon dropped the blade and she could still see a subtle rise and fall of the man's chest as he lay there.

She looked up to see a few security guards and grabbed to her boyfriend. Where were they earlier? They had needed them earlier."

"Please get this man help, he just attacked us," Kyoko said as she tried to move Kuon off of the man. She saw the security guards call over someone who could take the man to the hospital and Kyoko wrapped her arms around her boyfriend as the men looked at the two of them shocked. "You got a problem?" she asked as she looked at Kuon as he looked as if he had exited his own body.

"You didn't kill him," she attempted to tell him but she wasn't sure if the words were getting through.

"You should probably go to the hospital too, Mogami-san," one of the security men said and Kyoko put a hand to her face before shaking her head.

"I've got it," she said not wanting to think of how bad it might look.

…..

…..

"Can you put your chin up for me?" Julie asked as she sat with Jelly in the makeup room attached to the president's office. She softly applied some concealer on Kyoko's cheek. "I think you should go to see a doctor tomorrow but," Julie looked back at the other woman, "Ten-chan, you agree with me?" she asked as Ten nodded.

"Nobody would notice a thing," she said before looking at Julie as they both shared a sigh.

"Why don't we sit in here for a little bit? I'll have some of Darling's fantastic tea brought in and there would be some nice desserts that we could test. I think he just had some flown in from Italy and I love Italian desserts," Jelly said as Kyoko looked at the mirror and then stared at the floor.

"Is the guy okay?" she asked and Julie sighed.

"He's on life support but they said that they are hopeful that he'll recover," Julie replied before looking at the girl her husband loved like his own daughter. "Kyoko, please don't worry yourself over him. In all eyes of the law, this was a man who broke in and entered a private residence and hurt you with a knife. Kuon is also not in the best shape mentally speaking _because_ of this man and people like him. I doubt that Kuon is going to be locked up and tried for murder."

Jelly looked at them suspiciously despite the fact that Julie thought that she had left the room.

"Were they ever intending to kill him?" Kyoko asked with tears in her eyes as she looked at her boyfriend's mother. "Were they just trying to break him?"

Julie sighed, "Let's not think about that right now," she told the young woman.

Kyoko looked down, "I don't know how not to…" she said with tears in her eyes. She wasn't scared of Kuon and how far he had gotten and how he had been pushed to the point of physically hurting someone. They had hurt her and he had been a hero and tried to protect her. However, she had the suspicion that he hadn't had control of his body and that all the work he had done since Rick's death had been taken away from him. She hated them most for that. Was this the condition that they wanted him to be in?

…..

…..

Kuu looked at the small cat in his hands as he pet the top of his head. He set the kitten down on the floor before seeing Cain rush over to a lump in the bed at the president's own house. Cain batted the lump before jumping up, upset about not having been paid attention.

"Maybe it would be best for you to go ho-" the president said but Kuu turned around, his eyes widening before they narrowed and he walked over to lean against the wall.

"No, I'm…I'm fine here," he said before glaring at the president, "Don't you dare tell me what to do in this situation, Boss" he said as his whole body shook.

"I'm just thinking with what the doctors have been saying," Lory continued and Kuu shook his head in protest.

"So what? So a team of medical and psychiatric doctors say that he's catatonic, that he's nonresponsive, that he's locked inside of himself. Is that why you're telling me to leave? Which of those diagnoses translates into the idea that I'm not his father and he's not my son. I thank you for giving him the most secured place to heal that you can think of but….I don't want to leave him."

Kuu wrapped his arms around himself before he went over to his son. He placed a hand on his shoulder before seeing it shake. He couldn't let his son see this weakness in him. "If you had just done something to begin with," he said as Lory looked at Kuu.

"Are you seriously saying that I _want_ him like this?" Lory asked in an incredulous manner. "I know that I should have acted earlier but I care deeply about Kuon. I shouldn't have let him stay in this country, I…"

"Grandfather?" Maria asked from behind the two men, "Is Kuon really not doing well?" she asked before seeing the man's reflection in the lighting hanging above him. She covered her mouth as she looked at him and her eyes filled with tears. He looked just like a broken doll.

"Where's Kyoko-nee?" Maria asked as she looked at the two of them and Kuu walked over to his son, picking the cat up who was batting at his shell of a body.

"She's at the agency," Lory said, "Let's give them some time together," he said trying to lead Maria out of the room. Kuu sighed as he ran his hand along Kuon's form.

"I'm so sorry that I failed as a father," he apologized to his son, "Please get strong and come back to us, we're ready to help you whenever you're ready to be with us again,"

…

…

Kyoko looked at a picture of her and Kuon on her phone. She was hoping that she could do something which would bring him back and make him know what she loves him despite his violent actions. He had been protecting her, she had been hurt and he had made sure that she wasn't dead. He deserved his happiness as much as any other good person did.

As she was trying to imagine his touch against her skin, her phone buzzed and she looked down at it to see Maria's face pop up, she pressed it and tried to clear her throat so as to keep the pain from spreading to others. "Hello, Mogami speak-"

"Kyoko-nee, we have to take these people down,"

 **End of Chapter Twenty One**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you, reviewers Chapter Twenty**

Ashenvale, Brennakai, Crazy4Animation, KrisXD, ktoll9, Mercedes1312, paulagato,


	23. Chapter 22 - Ordinary Mortals

**AN:** Hope you enjoy, this fic is really nearing its close and I really want to have another one read complete on my profile 😊 Thank you for choosing to read it 😊

 **Chapter Twenty Two – Ordinary Mortals**

Maria looked at Kyoko as the two of them sat in one of the vacant rooms within LME. Maria looked at the list before her which just mentioned rather expensive voodoo dolls and spells. Maria sighed as she looked down the list and started to just tap on the papers. "Big Sis," she said as she looked at the papers, "I don't know what to do. The way that they hurt Kuon, I don't know if there's any spells that will make it so that they are left with the same hurt."

Kyoko sighed, "I don't know either, not about spells but I think we're going to have to get the police involved in this," she said before looking at Maria. "We need a trap but I think we're going to need to make it legal."

"Yeah, if it's not legal then Kuon could get in even more trouble," Maria said as she shivered thinking about how he had looked so unlike himself. All of that specialness that had been Ren Tsuruga had seemed to disappear when he had been hurt and Maria wasn't sure how to fight against that. The first time, he had had a rather nasty burn on his face but he was still wanted in movies to play the villain, he was still wanted to be a model. Despite his appearance, he was still shown how much people loved him and how much they wanted him.

It was being pushed again and again and again and that would make anyone want to throw in the towel. This was going to have to involve the police, maybe some body guards, and maybe some high-tech electronic equipment. Well, the last part could be put onto the back burner.

Maria watched as Kyoko paled and she looked at the table, "Big Sis?" she asked and Kyoko smiled as she stood up, "Where are you going?"

"I was just going to get myself something to drink, Maria-chan," she smiled happily. She tried to hide the pain that was reflecting in her eyes but she wasn't very good at doing so. She wanted to hurt them in the same way that Kuon had been hurt but that wasn't something she was going to be able to achieve on her own. What needed to happen was that they needed to be found guilty by the law. They needed to be imprisoned and punished for their actions and they needed to find out the base, the headquarters of their gang.

Kyoko knew who she could go to for answers like that but she was still trying to become someone who would make that woman proud. She was still trying to live up to the name Mogami and she was still trying to prove that her own life wasn't a mistake. However, this involved Corn and maybe she would prefer to make him proud and keep him happy than anything else. Yet, to see that woman without a bargaining chip was a terrible idea.

She had to plan for this, plan what she could offer her to make this plan work efficiently.

"Big Sis," Maria asked as she saw the fire burning within Kyoko's eyes. She was a little excited to know what Kyoko was planning but she was still worried. Sometimes the plans that Kyoko made rivalled her grandfather's in how far they stretched what was possible. Maria also had that trait a little bit but it wasn't to the state that Kyoko's or her grandfather's were. "What are you thinking of?"

"I think I'm going to go and see my mother," Kyoko said and Maria gasped as she looked at her, tilting her head to the side so that she would be able to fully see the expression on Kyoko's face. She looked so bold and daring, it was really something that Maria felt she should be aiming for.

"Are you sure?" the young girl asked and Kyoko nodded.

"I'm sure, she might not want to see me but I think I've got the perfect bartering chip that she wants. I think I can do it," she smiled and Maria looked at her again. She could only imagine what kind of bartering chip Kyoko could be talking about. "I'll do anything to keep him safe."

"Good luck then, I'll work on my spells," Maria said and Kyoko nodded.

"I just think that I need to talk to him before I do it. Hopefully he'll forgive me for it but if it's what gets him moving again then that's what I want. I want him to live the happiest and most fulfilling life that he possibly can."

Maria smiled as Kyoko held a fist to her chest proving her motivation. Maria hadn't wanted to hand Ren off to anyone, she hadn't wanted to see him in a stupid relationship with some stupid woman but she was supportive of her two friends getting together. After all, it was more than obvious how much Kyoko loved him. They both deserved to feel that love.

…

…

Kyoko hated seeing Kuon so broken that he wasn't responsive. She wondered if that was ever something that could happen to her, that she would just stop moving and responding to the people around her no matter what they were saying or how much they loved her. Of course it could happen to her but she wished it wouldn't. When her mother had disowned her on TV then she had felt hollow and let even Shotaro take power over her, it had been seeing Ren that had cheered her up.

She wondered if he even knew that she was there. Kyoko sighed and without permission, got into the bed, making sure to take slow breaths so that she only needed to take up a small amount of space. She wrapped her arms around him and cried on his back. He couldn't feel this, right? He was stuck within his own head. He didn't even know that she was here.

"I'm so so sorry," she whispered as she felt her heart sting painfully in her. All of these years she had seen him as a great actor who could breeze through the professional field because of his skills and it reminded her of how she had thought that a fairy prince wouldn't have the troubles that ordinary mortals had.

She had been wrong on both of those accounts.

Kuon was human, a human who had endured pains that she didn't want to think about and as her sobs dampened his shirt, she found it even harder to control herself or keep herself calm. "I love you," she repeated and then felt a slight movement.

Was that just her imagination? The doctor had said that he was paralyzed, that psychologically he wouldn't be able to move because he was trapped. The doctor had said things like that before, that it might take years until he really moved around again but he was moving now.

"Kuon?" she whispered before hearing a hum, "Are you? Are you awake?" she asked him and she gasped as she heard his voice. Even Cain hadn't been able to prompt a reaction from him.

"Barely," he whispered and Kyoko grinned. She would take it, all that she needed was for him to be alive and she would take that response. Barely meant that he could get better, that she could help him. It made her focus even more on what her plan with her mother was.

"I'm so glad," Kyoko said as a happy sob came from her chest. She hummed again. She knew that he might not want to talk about anything but that didn't matter, as long as he was moving in the right direction then that was what she cared about more than anything.

"Kuon, I have a secret to tell you," she said as she heard the door open and she closed her eyes. She didn't even want to turn and see who that was. "A long time ago when we first met, I told you that I was going to be Shotaro's bride. I told you that that was what I wanted most in the world, to marry Sho and be happy with him. When you next met me, I said that love was disgusting and that I would never let myself feel those emotions. I hated love, I hated the idea that I could ever be in love but I think that all of those things made me understand how much I want to be both your bride and an actress who can represent Japan. I want to make you bentos, to wait for you to return just to ask you how your day went, to pay the bills with, to sleep with in bed every night. I love you," she said, "And you should know how special it is that I love somebody."

"I love you too," Kuon said in little more than a whisper and Kyoko kissed his back again.

She really did love him, she could only hope that this plan would work and that she and Kuon could try again to motivate him and let him rise like the phoenix that he was. She hoped that when he had begun this, he had been a sparrow, a wren, a small bird who was beautiful with good performing skills but after this he would be even more legendary, something nobody could expect and the whole world would marvel at.

A phoenix rising from the ashes.

…..

…..

Kyoko knew this office building, she had imagined going here many times and she had even walked up to the doors without an appointment before but outside of arranging the meeting with her mother, she hadn't gone near the inside of the building. It was harder for her to enter this building than it had been for her to enter LME at the beginning. This was for Kuon though and so she had to keep remembering what her goal was and try to aim for that happy life with Kuon that she dreamed of.

Kyoko's eyes widened and she took a few steps back as she saw her mother exit the building and then give her a cold look, her expression made Kyoko want to learn how to evaporate. She knew that she was just the aborted baby that was never aborted and she was a reason why this woman had missed many opportunities in her career that she valued above any single person.

"What are you doing here?" she asked as she tried to turn her back on Kyoko.

Kyoko fell into one of the most formal bows that she had in her life but managed to calm her breathing. "I could really use your help," she said and Saena rolled her eyes.

"If this is about needing a signature, send the forms to me in the way that you did before," she said and Kyoko looked down, her whole body shaking.

"I need a little bit more of your help," she said and Saena sighed.

"Don't tell me it's for your boyfriend, it's ridiculous really…your name being reported like that," she said and Kyoko felt her knuckles turn white.

"If you help me, I am willing to do whatever is in my power to erase the Mogami part from my name. I will go to whatever sources I need to so that that is not part of my past. Whether it be school records or from the Fuwas or from the Japanese government, I will make sure that my name is legally changed on all of those documents. I will be Kyoko but I will not be Kyoko Mogami if you are able to help me," she begged wondering how this woman would respond to those words.

 **End of Chapter Twenty Two**

 **Thank you for choosing to read this chapter**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Twenty One**

Ashenvale, brennakai, EmmaLasagna, KrisXD, ktoll9, paulagato, Undertheskys


	24. Chapter 23 - More Like A Phoenix

**AN:** When I started writing this chapter, I was planning on it being the penultimate one with a flashforward showing Kuon's modelling and acting life as strong as ever despite the marks on his face, I was going to show him marrying Kyoko but when I finished the chapter, I thought it had a decent end. Hope you enjoy and thank you for all of the support for this story.

 **Chapter Twenty Three – More Like a Phoenix**

Kyoko stared at the floor of the room where Kuon was still in the bed. He had had enough of this crap going on around him and Kyoko had to sympathize with him on that. It was hard but over the past week, she had started seeing the arrests coming in and more than that, as the gang seemed to be pulled out of the rabbit hole one by one, police in both Japan and America were finding the hidden areas and huge operations were being shut down.

Kuon was regaining joy again and Kyoko felt happy that not all the hope had been gone from him. She was able to hold him in her heart and make sure he grew strong again. He would continue to have those marks on his face, the constant reminder of who he had been once upon a time but he could survive this, he had been doing great before.

Still, as she heard that the investigation was winding down to a close she remembered her part of the deal. She remembered that she would have to go to anybody who ever hired her and erase her name, she would have to go to the Fuwas and see if they were able to help her. It was a trade off for all of the evidence that was now streaming in.

She had no idea who she would be after everything was cleared up. No idea what last name she should take because as much as she did want to take the name Hizuri, she wasn't ready to get married and she didn't want to take the name Hizuri before he married her and they started their life together. Maybe she could take the name Kotonami but then again, what would Moko think of her if she did that?

Kyoko sighed, maybe it was better for her to create a name for herself. She could look in books and scripts and maybe pull out something that spoke to her or maybe she could even use a common run of the mill last name. Kyoko Yamamoto or something. She sighed and saw Kuon looking at her.

"This must have taken a lot of work on your mother's behalf," he said and she looked at him with steady eye contact. She nodded and he frowned. "She wouldn't do all of this for free," he commented and Kyoko shook her head.

"Did you pay her?" Kuon asked nervously. Whatever form of payment Kyoko used then he hoped he could reimburse it. She was doing all of this for him. She was trying to protect him and there had to be a catch.

"In a way," Kyoko smiled and Kuon frowned, he studied the woman he loved.

"What did you give up?" he asked knowingly and Kyoko bowed her head.

"I promise that I would no longer be part of the Mogami family. I promised her that I would change my name and no longer be her daughter," she saw the pain on Kuon's face and shook her head. She didn't want him to feel guilt from any of this, "Kuon, just consider this as me choosing you over her because that's what I want to do. That's a decision I would make again. I would choose you over anybody," she heard a knock on the door and turned, her eyes lighting up in shock as she faced her mother who had come into the room.

"Well it's good to hear you keeping to your promise," Saena said as she stared at Kyoko as if looking at a flea. She didn't want to admit that it would be easier for her to forget about Kyoko's existence if she wasn't carrying around her name. She might recognize her as having a connection between them if this girl proved herself but she was going to be much easier to ignore from now on.

"Thank you for all that you've done for the two of us," Kyoko said as she got up to her feet and then saw that her mother was holding a hotel card.

"I've arranged for this particular member of the gang to be picked up by the police at this hotel room in about three quarters of an hour," she said checking her watch. "I thought that you might want to see them in the time before that," she said as she handed the card to Kuon who stared at it. "This is the individual responsible for destroying your image. Don't worry, I had a friend of mine restrain him."

"Legally?" Kyoko asked and Saena frowned at her.

"I don't know what business of yours that is," she commented before turning to walk away. "So, what will your new last name be? Any suggestions?" she asked Kuon although she really didn't care what he had to say. Kuon took a deep breath in and reached out for Kyoko's hand.

"How about Tsuruga?" he asked her and Kyoko's eyes widened. Was he really going to give her that name for her own use. She nodded and looked at her mother.

"Tsuruga," she repeated, "I will be the heir of the Tsuruga name and carry it's legacy," she said proudly as her mother laughed and turned her back on her. Kyoko looked at Kuon and then at the card key, "Are you going to go?" she asked and Kuon sighed.

"I want to go," he told her.

"Do you mind me coming along? I can wait in the lobby but I want to be there for you," she said and Kuon sighed. He wanted to get revenge and he didn't want to lead her into any danger but he felt that it was safer for her to be in the lobby then her to try to sneakily come with him.

He nodded, "As long as you stay there in the lobby."

…

…

It was strange for Kuon to be standing here right now. Behind the door was someone who he had a past with and who he could have seen himself beaten to a blood pulp less than ten years ago. He could imagine himself smiling as the blood was on his fists and he was finally allowed to execute his revenge. He could imagine himself yelling at the man in front of him. Telling him that he was a worthless person who didn't even deserve life. He could remember that side of him but he didn't feel it.

Kuon stared at the card in his hand and the room number on the door and he just didn't want to go in. He looked at the mirror on the wall, on his changed appearance, his scars and remembered how gorgeous he had always been told he looked. He remembered how he had been a highly sought after model. That didn't feel as if it were the case anymore.

He also remembered how people had wanted to work with him as both an actor and a model because of his strength and his talent. How people had told him that the scarring turned him into an inspiring force for people who had also suffered their own wounds. He thought about the love that Kyoko held for him.

As much as part of him wanted to exact his revenge on the jerk who had put him through this, it was best for the law to take care of him. Kuon closed his eyes and looked at the burn. He had to admit that it was still looking disgusting to him but there could be change and closure that didn't involve him channeling that fifteen year old kid.

With a heavy sigh, Kuon walked away from the door, not wanting to hold the key card anymore and not wanting to get his revenge through his fists. He wanted to prove to them that he was stronger than the kid that they had had a problem with.

Without even having used the card, Kuon went to the front desk and placed it down. "I found this on the floor," he lied, "I thought maybe somebody had dropped it," he walked away from the counter as people whispered over his identity and went to stand beside Kyoko. "Let's go home," he said in a confident way.

She turned to look at him, "Am I allowed to ask what you did to him?" she asked and Kuon looked at her with a laugh.

"I couldn't even go in. Although I look like this, have this ugly face, I couldn't even go inside the room," he admitted and Kyoko kissed him, being careful of the burn.

"So," she asked gently, "What do we do now?"

"We start building things together from the ashes," he told her, "we start to rise again and start to fight again. You know, I'm less like I was when I was a kid and I'm definitely more like a phoenix."

 **End of Story**

 **Thank you so much to everyone who supported it**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Twenty Two**

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